Things To Come
by chelle815
Summary: CHAPTER 6 NOW UP! This fic involves Tsukasa and Tsukushi going their seperate ways, only to meet again years later. It's a story of their lives, their children, and the things to come...
1. Prologue

Disclaimer for the entire fiction. ^_^ Standard Disclaimers Apply. Hana Yori Dango and its characters belong to its rightful owners and affiliates. The original characters in this story, however, are mine.  
  
This fic takes place after the one year Kaede gives to Tsukasa and Tsukushi. Enjoy!  
  
Prologue  
  
"Makino.are you sure this is what you want to do? Just leave?" Tsukushi paused for a moment.  
  
"Hanazawa Rui.you and I both know that this is the best for both Doumyoji and I. It hurts too much to stay. I.I can't.well.It's not like he's going to miss me." Tsukushi said as she continued walking through the apartment gathering her things.  
  
Several suitcases lay about the almost barren apartment, half-filled with clothes and other necessities. Tsukushi was leaving for America in two days and she wasn't anywhere near finished. There was so much that needed to be done, and she felt like she accomplished nothing. She was still having doubts as to whether she should leave or not, and it was tearing her up inside.  
  
A hand was placed on her shoulder, causing her to stop in her fast movement. She whirled around to see Rui giving her the most concerned look.  
  
"Just give him some more time Makino." Rui said in a soft voice. He wanted to hold her, to reach out to her, beg her to stay, but he knew it was hopeless.  
  
"TIME? WHAT TIME DO I HAVE LEFT?? A year has passed. That evil mother of his will surely return and will be overly ecstatic that her son has NO recollection of who I am!"  
  
Tsukushi sighed. "You don't know what it's like for me. Everyday hoping that idiot will come bursting through that door, look at me with those big brown eyes of his, and say 'Makino, I'm so sorry for being so stupid. For putting you through so much. For forgetting the most important woman in my life.' An-.and..he.he would."  
  
Tsukushi could no longer hold her tears back. Rui reached out, finally, and wrapped his arms around her. Her knees went weak as she cried her heart out and Rui never let go. Tsukushi's sobs died down and eventually, fell asleep in Rui's arms. He couldn't leave her there alone. She would be leaving soon and it was breaking his heart, knowing he would have to say good bye. Rui loved this woman, but he knew that her heart did not belong to him.  
  
That night Rui walked home, remembering Tsukushi's tears and her sadness. It broke his heart to see her like that. Rui thought of a million reasons to convince her to stay, but none of them made its way out of his mouth tonight. He had to speak to Tsukasa and tell him to go to her. She needs him.  
  
"Oi Tsukasa! Quit being so stubborn and listen to me for a change!" Rui yelled at his friend trying to knock some sense into him.  
  
"Makino is going to leave for good. Do you understand that? She won't be coming back. She's decided to go study abroad in--  
  
"Good Riddance!" Tsukasa cut Rui off. "She has been nothing but a nuisance this past year. Always following me around and trying to make me believe that I was in love with HER." Tsukasa stopped as he, for a second, felt sadness in him. The words Rui said, the words he just said, for some reason it hurt him, but he'd never show it.  
  
"You're unbelievable! You are going to lose the one woman who made a man out of you!" Rui's voice filled with anger and frustration. Tsukasa said nothing, staring outside his bedroom window. "FINE! Be like that then. She leaves for Boston tomorrow afternoon. Meet us at the airport at 1." Rui slammed the door and stormed out of the Doumyoji mansion thinking about the biggest mistake Tsukasa was about to make.  
  
'Dammit! After all this time they're STILL trying to make me like that.that girl' Tsukasa thought in annoyance. He lay in bed, the conversation with Rui earlier still playing in his head. Tsukasa didn't know why he kept thinking about it, but he was tired and tried to get some sleep. He had a rough day with everyone harassing him about Tsukushi.  
  
'I'm never going to see her again.' Tsukasa yawned, falling asleep soon after.  
  
Tsukushi stood there looking up at gate number '11-C' 'Well, here I am' she thought as the rest of her friends and family gathered around her at the gate. Soujiro, Akira, Rui, Tsubaki, Kazuya, Shigeru, Yuuki, and Sakurako were all there along with her parents and brother. They all came to bid her farewell and wish her good luck in America. Tsukushi made this decision nearly a month ago. She was given the opportunity to study abroad and without a doubt, took it. She had just graduated from Eitokou High, and she knew it was a tough decision to make. She cried every night, always unsure of her decision. She always thought of Tsukasa and never lost hope, but it was time to move on. Tsukushi had one year to make him remember and she couldn't do it. She tried everything. She tried to be his friend, tried to be nice, tried to be mean, but every attempt failed. 'I'm so sorry Doumyoji.' she thought to herself, a tear trickled down the side of her face. She wiped the tear away before anyone noticed.  
  
"Do you really have to go Makino? There won't be any poor virgin girls to pick on." -WHACK-  
  
Tsukushi smacked him before speaking  
  
"Ah Nishikado-san, I'm quite sure that you will one day find another poor virgin girl to keep you company." She giggled, trying to keep the conversation light and humorous, but it was just too hard to be funny right now. Those around her could see the effort Tsukushi was putting into smiling.  
  
"Tsukushi-chan! You promise you won't forget us? You promise you'll keep in touch and write us??" Kazuya cried with those big puppy dog eyes, waterfalls of tears streaming down his face.  
  
"Of course I won't forget! How could I ever forget the most important." she stopped, realizing what she was about to say. Her eyes downcast as she thought. 'How could she forget them.' Her friends and family who love and care for her. She loved and cared for him, but he forgot her.Snapping back, she hugged her dear friend and said, "I could never forget any of you. Thank you all for everything. Thank you for caring and helping me through all this." A forced smile still on her face.  
  
The remainder of the time, they all stood around and talked of the fond memories of the past few years. Her mother and father were in tears, but so happy that their daughter would go to America and eventually find a rich and handsome American man to bring home.  
  
'Why was it so hard?' Tsukushi thought to herself. 'I'm only going to be gone a year. I'll be back to visit. They act like I'm leaving for good.'  
  
"Attention passengers, Flight 829 to Boston will now begin seating at Gate 11-C. Please have your tickets ready. Thank you."  
  
At the sound of the announcement, everyone gathered around Tsukushi. Last minute pictures were taken and farewells were said and done.  
  
"I'm sorry my brother is an idiot Tsukushi-chan, but I'm truly going to miss you. I'll visit you sometime kay?" Tsubaki said, her eyes tearing while she hugged Tsukushi good bye.  
  
"Thank you nee-san.for everything"  
  
She saved her goodbye to Rui last. It was a simple good bye, but it was the hardest to say.  
  
"Thank you Hanazawa Rui. Thank you for being my friend and for understanding what I must do." She hugged him and he enveloped her in his arms, fighting back tears. 'This woman is going to drive me crazy one day' Thought Rui as he continued to hold Tsukushi in his arms.  
  
"I'll always be here for you Makino. I love you" Rui whispered into her hair. He released her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. A slight blush came over Tsukushi's cheek at hearing words with so much emotion and of course the kiss on the cheek didn't help her blushing either.  
  
"I'm sorry he couldn't make it Makino. We all know how much you just wanted to see him one last time." Akira said.  
  
"It's okay Mimasaka-san. It's easier this way." Tsukushi said.  
  
Walking over to Rui again, Tsukushi handed him an envelope. "Please make sure you give this to him. Even if he never remembers, make sure he reads it one day."  
  
Rui looked past Makino, gaping. "What's wrong?" Tsukushi asked noticing the look of shock on Rui's face. Rui motioned for Tsukushi to turn around. Standing before her was Tsukasa, both hands in his pocket, looking incredibly nervous.  
  
"Uh.. Yo!" Tsukasa stammered.  
  
"Dou-my-."  
  
"Wait." He said, holding a hand up to Tsukushi's face. "Just let me talk. Don't think that I came here because I actually care about a poor girl like you." Tsukushi rolled her eyes at that comment.  
  
"Everyone tells me you played an important part in my life before the stabbing, and I don't remember any of it. I know I was a jerk to you this past year when you were just trying to help me remember." Doumyoji continued. "Anyways, I can't have you leave without you knowing that even if you were a pain in the ass, I don't hate you." Doumyoji finished, turning away, feeling the blood rush to his face. Something inside him was hurting and bothered him that he had no idea what it was, but he had his pride and wouldn't show his emotion to anyone, especially this girl.  
  
"Friends?" He asked as he held his hand out to Tsukushi.  
  
Still in shock, Tsukushi with unshed tears in her eyes, stood there, unsure of what to do. 'Friends huh?' She thought 'We were so much more than friends' She looked at him with her eyes pleading for him to remember her right now. She would stay if he had the slightest recollection, but it didn't happen. So with all the strength she had left, holding back her tears, she extended her right hand out to him and they shook hands.  
  
"Friends" She said. Tsukushi walked away through the gate, looking back once in awhile to wave to those she loved most, and began a new life. 


	2. The News

As usual, standard disclaimers apply. Hana Yori Dango belongs to their respectful owners and NOT me =)  
  
Ch. 1-The News  
  
"Hiro, anata.I'm so sorry" Tsukushi said on the phone. She was silent, not knowing what to say to him.  
  
"We'll be okay.." Tsukushi heard his final words before hanging up, tears streaming down her face.  
  
'How am I going to tell them?' Tsukushi thought, as she sat by her window. A million thoughts ran through her head.  
  
It was a sunny, yet cool winter afternoon in Boston. School had just let out, and students could be heard saying 'good-bye' and 'see you after break'. Mariko Nagane, a beautiful girl with long brown hair and big brown eyes, stepped out of the school building. She looked up at the sky thinking how great it was that school was out for the winter break. 'What a relief,' she thought as she twirled around at the top of the steps. Mariko looked around trying to find Ken, her older brother. Seeing him at the bottom of the steps, she ran towards him with a huge smile on her face.  
  
"Why are you smiling like that?" Ken asked.  
  
"Because school's out. " Mariko smiled up at her older brother. "No books, no teachers, no stupid stuck up kids for two whole weeks."  
  
"Allright kid, let's go."  
  
"Nii-san.can we just walk today? It's so nice outside." Mariko said cheerfully, tugging on her brother's sleeve.  
  
"Riko-chan." a nickname he gave his little sister "I don't feel like walking" Ken complained, but his sister dragged him by the hand and started their walk home.  
  
The walk home normally took about twenty minutes, which the siblings didn't mind too much, especially on beautiful days like this. They talked about their plans for winter break. Mariko, only being 15, didn't have too many plans, except for hang out with her friends at the local mall and spend numerous amounts of money on clothing she would probably only wear once, being the shop-a-holic she is. Mariko looked very much like her mother with the brown hair and sparkling eyes, but had her father's height. She was one of the tallest girls in her class standing at 5'9". Though very friendly and cheerful most of the time, Mariko was not a force to be reckoned with when angry. This being her first year of high school, Mariko already got into plenty of fights at school, with both girls and boys. Once they realized she was Ken Nagane's little sister, everyone backed off because they knew better than to have Ken on their bad side.  
  
Ken was the spitting image of his father with the raven black hair and being 6'0" tall and having soft brown eyes. Like Mariko, he had a short temper, and beat any guy down who tried to pick on his sister. Him and Mariko got this temper from their mom. Every girl at the high school had a crush on him and everyone else just wanted to be his friend. He was popular and great at sports. He's only a junior and already the captain of the varsity basketball and tennis teams. Ken didn't have too many enemies, only the ones who picked on Riko. He doesn't brag about his money the way all those other brats at his school dif. His only plans for the winter break was to cruise around in his new Benz that his parents bought him for his birthday. They would only allow Ken to drive it if and only if his grades had improved. So, this past term, he studied hard and even asked Mariko to help him, and so now he had to wait and see if all that studying paid off.  
  
"Do you ever wonder why mom doesn't talk about her past? About Japan?" Mariko asked, breaking the silence.  
  
"Sometimes, but I figure she'll tell us one day." Ken looked at his sister with curiosity. "Where'd that come from?"  
  
Mariko shrugged but answered, "Well, I was talking to her the other night and I asked about her life in Japan.." Pausing, "She told me that she was tired and I should go back to my room. But she looked sad Onii-san, like she wanted to cry, but couldn't."  
  
Ken sighed, noticing Mariko's concern. "Look Riko-chan, don't worry about it. Mom will be okay." He smiled in hopes that Mariko would cheer up.  
  
Finally arriving home, Mariko called out to her mother "OKAASAN!!! WE'RE HOME NOW!!!" as she ran around the huge mansion trying to find her mother. Opening and slamming all the doors, Mariko eventually found her mother sitting in the living room. Mariko was speechless at her mother's appearance. She looked like she had been crying, with puffy red eyes and disheveled hair. She honestly looked like a mess.  
  
"Kaa-san? What's wrong?" Mariko ran to her mother sensing some very bad news up ahead.  
  
"Ah Mariko-chan." She looked up at me. "Please call your brother in here as well. I need to talk to the both of you." Mariko stood and left to find Ken. She burst into his room, startling Ken and making him fall off his chair. She laughed hysterically when she saw him sprawled on the floor.  
  
"Nii-san! GET UP! Mom looks like she'd been crying and she said there's something important she needs to tell us...WHY ARE YOU STILL SITTING??? Come on already..Let's GO!" She pulled her older brother up, not giving him a chance to ask any questions. Within minutes, the two made their way back to the living room, where Tsukushi was now standing.  
  
"Both of you, sit down." The two of them obeyed at her request.  
  
"I have some news to share with you. It's not the best of news either." Tsukushi paused, "But your grandfather has passed away."  
  
Tsukushi choked back tears. "You were both aware that he has been ill the past few months and well, early this morning your Aunt called to inform us that he had passed away." Mariko and Ken sat frozen, both in a state of shock. Moments later, Mariko stood and threw her arms around Tsukushi's waist, crying her eyes out. Ken soon followed as Tsukushi comforted her two children.  
  
"It will be okay. Your grandfather loved you both very much, always remember that." Tsukushi knew how close her children were to their grandfather. "Remember all the memories you shared with him and know that the Gods are watching over him now." The two nodded, tears still falling from their eyes.  
  
After their tears had subsided, Tsukushi spoke, "Your father left this morning for Tokyo in preparation for the funeral and.we will be leaving in a few days to follow and attend the funeral."  
  
Tsukushi broke the silence, "You know that since your father is the heir of this company we will have to move to Japan." Mariko and Ken's eyes went wide.  
  
"We won't be coming back here for awhile. Maybe for a vacation or something, but you will be calling Tokyo home now. A few of our belongings will be sent there and whatever else we need, we can just buy. I've already contacted your school to withdraw you both and your school records have been sent to your new high school in Tokyo." She eyed both her children as they now stared at her in shock.  
  
"WHAT?!?!" they yelled in unison.  
  
"We're moving?! In a few days? But Kaa-san." Mariko stared at her mom dumbfounded with this information.  
  
Tsukushi snapped. "You know your father's place in the family. We must support him in every way. Remember, he is suffering now as well and we have to be strong for him. We all knew this was going to happen eventually.." Tsukushi thought of her husband, trying her best to be strong for him.  
  
After a moment of silence.."Okaa-san." Ken said approaching his mother again "We understand." He smiled at her, letting her know that it would all be okay. "Can I go now? I've got some things to do before we leave. I'll start packing my stuff when I get home."  
  
Tsukushi nodded, thanking Ken for understanding the situation. "Just don't be too late okay Ken?"  
  
"Hai Kaa-san."  
  
Mariko began walking off "Where are you going Mariko-chan?"  
  
"Ah.just to my room. I should start packing. I've got a lot of things to go through." Mariko walked off in disbelief. Her grandfather was gone and she didn't even get to talk to him one last time. And now, she had to leave her friends here and pack up to move thousands of miles where she knew nobody. It was a rough time for Mariko, but she was somewhat happy that she'd finally get to go to Japan.  
  
Tsukushi sat in the oversized black leather couch, with her head tilted towards the ceiling. It had been nearly twenty years since Makino Tsukushi, Nagane Tsukushi now, returned home. The thought of going back home scared her. Things were so complicated and she wasn't sure if she was ready to face her past.  
  
After graduating from Eitokou, Tsukushi came to Boston for college and lived with the Nagane's, her host family. She had only planned on studying abroad for a year, but eventually graduated from college and decided Boston was a better place for her. Tsukushi got used to the people and the environment and her English had improved greatly during her college years.  
  
Hiro Nagane, the middle child, and her had become good friends during her stay. Hiro was her pillar of strength, and day by day, Tsukushi opened up to Hiro. He learned of all her pain and suffering in Japan. It was he who comforted her and held her hand when she broke down. Tsukushi told Hiro of her relationship with Tsukasa, and he helped her cope through it all. Slowly, he brought her out of her depression. It took her many months before she stopped crying herself to sleep each night. Eventually, the two became the best of friends and that friendship blossomed into love. Slowly, memories of Tsukasa were pushed to the back of Tsukushi's thoughts as she fell in love with Hiro.  
  
Upon graduating college, the two were married. It was a beautiful wedding and her family, which she hadn't seen in many years, flew from Japan to attend her wedding. Most of her friends and their families from Japan were able to make it to the grand and exquisite wedding. Though sent an invitation, Tsukasa was unable to attend. He had many business affairs to attend to and wasn't able to join in the celebration. Tsukushi was told that Tsukasa never regained his memory of her, so she wasn't surprised when he couldn't make it to her wedding.  
  
Sure enough, Kaede Doumyoji was happy to hear of Tsukushi's decision and found another bride that Tsukasa actually approved of. Tsukushi was invited to the Doumyoji wedding, but declined the invitation. It was too hard for her to see her first love marry another, but she was happy for him. Out of the F4, only Rui visited on a regular basis with this wife and their children. Akira and Soujiro often stopped by if they were in America for business. She always loved seeing them again, and Mariko and Ken loved them even more, because they always brought gifts for the two. Every couple of years, they would bring their families and they'd all go on some grand vacation. It was always a sad day when they would leave, but at least they all kept in touch. Even Tsubaki visited when she was on the East Coast and they would spend the whole day shopping and catching up on news.  
  
For the past 15 years, Tsukushi had been working for a marketing firm in Boston doing market research and development. Even though she really didn't need to work, she wanted to show people that she was more than some rich man's wife. She had always been a hard worker and she instilled those values to her children. She taught them that money must be earned by working hard. It was not just handed to you.  
  
The next few days had been hectic with all the last minute packing and preparations. Mariko and Ken were given two boxes each to pack their life in. Tsukushi was busy determining what things went in this box or that box what to bring and what to leave. She knew this was a difficult transition for her children, but she knew they would be okay. Tsukushi missed her husband terribly, but was happy she would see him soon.  
  
Many friends had stopped by to say farewell. They spent all night talking and laughing and crying. Mariko went through nearly three rolls of film as she photographed all their visitors. After all their friends had left that last night, Tsukushi sighed as she finally had a chance to rest.  
  
"Ken.Mariko." Tsukushi said standing in the hallway between their rooms.  
  
"Yes Kaa-san?" The two answered.  
  
"Sleep early. Our flight leaves tomorrow at 7am"  
  
"Good night Okaasan"  
  
"Good night."  
  
  
  
Terms:  
  
(O)kaa-san: mom (O)nii-san: older brother Hai: yes 


	3. Going Home

Standard Disclaimers Apply. Hana Yori Dango belongs to its respectful owners and not me =)  
  
Ch. 2-Going Home  
  
Their flight left early this morning. Tsukushi woke up her children and the three of them left their home for good. There was no turning back now. Mariko and Ken were already fast asleep even before the plane took off. Tsukushi sat in her seat watching her two children. They knew nothing of Tsukushi's past in Japan, nor did they know what made her leave. She didn't want to burden them with her sad story. She didn't want them to know of the man who broke her heart many years ago. Tsukushi sighed, trying to get comfortable in the airplane seat. Ever since Hiro told her that they would be moving back to Japan, she had been so nervous. It's been so long. Would anyone care? Would anyone remember? 'Hmm.Would he remember?' The thought crossed her mind many times in the past. Tsukushi still loved Tsukasa, but locked him away long ago. It didn't matter because he never remembered her.  
  
Tsukushi thought of the first day she arrived in Boston. When she stepped off the plane, she felt lost and scared, not knowing what lay ahead. She didn't know who to look for at the airport, but she saw a boy about her age holding a sign with her name on it and walked towards him. He was quite tall and very good looking. He had midnight black hair and deep brown eyes. Tsukushi blushed when he approached her and smiled at her petite form.  
  
Time passed so quickly. Now Hiro, nearly 40, was the President of Nagane International, a top 10 accounting and consulting firm in Japan. They had many offices in America, Japan and Europe. Up until his father's death, Hiro ran the main offices in America. Now, he's taken full responsibility of the whole company. He had been born and raised in Boston, but his parents raised him so he was familiar with Japanese traditions, because he knew he would have to run the company one day. Hiro was good to his employees and treated them with a high amount of respect, which in turn made him well respected man in this business world. The great thing about Hiro is that he always made time for his family. He loved them and would do anything for their happiness. Whenever he was spending time with his family on vacation or just a normal dinner, he refused to take any calls or disruptions dealing with work.  
  
Tsukushi was jarred from her thoughts as she heard the stewardess announce over the intercom, "We will be landing shortly. Please return your seats in an upright position and buckle your safety belts. Thank you"  
  
'This is it' Tsukushi thought, her heart beating rapidly as the plane touched down.  
  
Stepping off the plane, Tsukushi saw her husband right away waving to her at the gate. She ran to him and threw her arms around his waist holding him close. Hiro wrapped his arms around her and kissed his wife gently on the lips.  
  
"I've missed you. I'm so glad you all made it safely."  
  
"OTOU-SAAN!!!!" Looking up, Hiro saw Mariko running to him like she hadn't seen her father in years. Ken followed close behind and told Mariko several times to calm down.  
  
As their children neared, Tsuskushi and Hiro broke apart.  
  
"How was your trip?" Their father asked.  
  
"She" Ken pointed to Mariko "wouldn't know. Riko-chan slept and snored the whole trip practically waking up the rest of the cabin." Ken burst in laughter as he saw the look on Mariko's face.  
  
"I DO NOT SNORE!" Mariko yelled in defense of her brother's teasing.  
  
"Let's get going. I have the car waiting and we still have to get your luggage from baggage claim." Said Hiro as they began walking.  
  
The drive seemed so long for the 15 year old who was eager to explore this new city. As they entered Tokyo, Mariko's eyes lit up in excitement. She knew right then and there that she was going to enjoy this place. Mariko sat impatiently in the limo, occasionally bothering Ken while he tried to sleep.  
  
Hiro broke the silence in the limo, sounding very serious, "All the funeral arrangements have been made for tomorrow." Tsukushi laced her fingers with her husband's, as she could sense the sadness in his voice.  
  
"I believe you two.." he said looking directly at Ken and Mariko ".will be on your best behavior. This isn't America. The rules here are different. Please do not bring any disrespect to the family name. Is that understood?" Hiro concluded. He knew his children were normally well behaved, but he also knew they inherited their mother's temper.  
  
"Hai Otou-san" They replied. Those two knew better than to disobey their father. He was a very stern man when it came to punishing them if they did something wrong. Ken and Mariko were hardly ever punished, but when they disobeyed their father, nothing was worse than the look of disappointment and anger that spread across Hiro's face.  
  
The limo turned the corner and arrived at the gate to the Nagane mansion. The gates opened and they drove up, what seemed like, an unending driveway lined with sakura trees. It was simply beautiful. Mariko had only seen pictures of this place never knowing how amazing it all was. The mansion was grand, as well as the land around it.  
  
Tsukushi was instantly reminded of the Doumyoji mansion. It was nearly as large, but the design of this house was more modern and sophisticated. Hiro said it was remodeled over the years to keep up with the changing times.  
  
Stepping out of the limo, Ken and Mariko stared at the mansion in awe.  
  
"This is our new home? We actually get to live here?" Mariko asked in astonishment. Her home back in Boston was pint-sized compared to this estate before her.  
  
Several maids and butlers gathered around the family to assist them with their luggage and to welcome them.  
  
"Okaeri nasai, Nagane-sama" They bowed politely and smiled.  
  
"Hana-chan, will you please show the children to their new rooms." Hiro said to Hana, one of their maids. She nodded and bowed, bringing the children inside.  
  
If one thought the outside was amazing, the inside of the grand estate, left a person breathless. Upon entering the mansion, Mariko noticed the beautiful split staircases, leading upstairs. The floors were white marble and whoever decorated this place must have wanted a clean and very modern look, due to the pristine white walls and contemporary furniture. The main house was split into three wings, south, east and west, with the entrance facing north. Downstairs, the south wing was a sitting area with large windows, overlooking the garden outside. In the center of the sitting area, there was a square shaped area with a spherical fountain in the middle, benches surrounding the four sides of the fountain.  
  
Hana-chan, Mariko, and Ken walked up to the east wing corridor and first arrived at Mariko's room. Hana-chan opened the door, "Here is your room, Oujo-sama."  
  
"Please just call me Mariko"  
  
"Hai, Mariko-san" Hana said.  
  
Mariko's eyes widened as she saw just how huge her new room was. 'Sure the house back in Boston was big, but this place is HUGE.' She thought. The glass windows spanning one of her bedroom walls let in a great view of Tokyo's skyline.  
  
"Amazing." That was all that could come to her mind as she looked out her windows. Mariko thought she felt stupid using such small words to describe this estate. She couldn't think of anything else though because it was all so breathtakingly beautiful.  
  
Ken and Hana-chan left Mariko alone. Mariko explored her room, the massive bathroom and walk in closet left her speechless. Sitting on her bed, her thoughts began to consume her 'Maybe it won't be so bad here.' She knew she had to get used to a new culture and the people. She just hoped the kids here were nothing like the snotty brats she had to deal with back home.  
  
'I wonder what else they have in this place.' Mariko wondered if there were any secret passageways in this big old house. There has to be at least one, so she decided she would be the one to find it.  
  
Ken's room was just as large, if not larger, than Mariko's. His room was a few doors down from Mariko and it overlooked the skyline as well with those large windows against the outside wall. Ken heard a knocking at the door.  
  
"Nii-san? You in there??"  
  
"Yeah Riko-chan, come on in!"  
  
Mariko entered and was even in more awe and somewhat jealous that he got the bigger room, but she didn't let it bother her too much. "You wanna go explore the rest of this place with me?" Mariko asked.  
  
"Sure thing. I was about to ask you the same thing." So the two headed off and went on their adventure for the day.  
  
They first explored the rest of the east wing upstairs, which just had their parents room, the study, the library and their father's office. There wasn't anything too interesting for them, except they discovered a secret door at the end of the corridor that turned out to be an elevator, which took them down to the kitchen. Mariko and Ken were friendly with the kitchen staff and stole a few snacks before continuing the exploration. The bottom half of the east wing led them to the dining area, breakfast area, and the living room, in which one wall was dedicated to photos of Mariko, Ken and their cousins. It seemed that their grandparents had all these photos of them taken at different ages and moments in their lives. Mariko looked over all the photos and laughed at her brother's bowl-hair cuts from the past. She found it amazingly cool that her grandparents had this wall dedicated to their grandchildren.  
  
They decided to explore the rest of the first floor and discovered a ballroom that took up the rest of the west wing. 'Wow! They must have thrown so many parties here.' Mariko thought as she peeked into the grand ballroom. Ken found another elevator and noticed it had a button for an underground level, so the two headed down, discovering bowling lanes and a movie theater. The theater sat about fifty people and was extremely high tech. There was even a snack and drink machine outside the theater.  
  
"Man Riko-chan, we've got it made here. We shoulda moved here long ago." Ken said in the elevator as they rode up to the top floor of the west wing. All they found upstairs in this wing were more bedrooms, obviously guest rooms as each room had their own motif.  
  
In the south wing, they found a home gym and a full salon. The game room was the best part of the south wing though. There was a huge 52" flat screen tv, with a great surround sound system attached to it. Ken didn't even need to bring any of his gaming systems, because they were all there, attached to a separate television on a different side of the room. There was a full sized pool table in the middle of the room and a raised sitting area in the back, whose doors opened up to a balcony, overlooking the property. It was going to be their second room, considering how much those two played video games and how much time they spent in front of the television.  
  
Exploring the grounds outdoors, they found an olympic sized pool with a nicely furnished pool house, tennis courts and a basketball court.  
  
"Allright! We get to play tennis and ball, and we don't even have to go anywhere!" Ken jumped around like a little boy.  
  
They found the living quarters for the house helpers. Hana told them that their grandfather was kind enough to give her and several other maids and butlers a place to live.  
  
"Hey Nii-san! Check this out!! We've got our own hot springs here. This is awesome!!" Mariko exclaimed, upon entering another building. The building was meant to hold tea ceremonies, but beyond that was a hot spring for outdoor baths. Mariko had heard so much about these outdoor baths, where you just sat there and relaxed in the hot spring. 'This isn't bad at all. I've already fallen in love with this place.' Mariko thought as her and Ken headed back in.  
  
After a few hours of exploring, the two were exhausted and plopped themselves on the couch in the game room.  
  
"Where have you two been? We've been trying to find you since we got here" Tsukushi, standing next to Hiro, asked the tired pair.  
  
"Kaa-san, we've been walking around the grounds of this place all day. It took us a few hours, but we found everything around here." Ken answered sounding like he was about to fall asleep.  
  
"You couldn't have possibly found everything around here" Hiro muttered under his breath, remembering all the secrets of the mansion.  
  
"Huh?" Mariko heard her father murmur something, but didn't quite catch it.  
  
"Nothing. Anyways, I hate to disturb your rest, but we have more important matters at hand right now. After dinner, you should both get some rest. Tomorrow is the funeral, meaning it will be a long day for all of us." Hiro spoke.  
  
"Hai.."  
  
The following morning, Mariko and Ken got dressed and went downstairs to meet with their parents. The ceremony lasted a few hours. Everyone was crying, especially Mariko and Ken, because they were so close to him, even if he was running the business in Japan. Their grandfather managed to always take the time off and visit his grandchildren in Boston. He loved them dearly, and it was sad he was gone now. Tsukushi thought of her father in law as her own father. He was always kind to her, especially when she first arrived in Boston. Hiro's older sister and younger brother flew back to Tokyo for their father's funeral. The three of them held each other close and cried together.  
  
Many people of great importance were at the funeral to give their respects to the Nagane family, and after the funeral, the guests traveled back to the Nagane mansion for the reception. Tsukushi did not really pay attention to those around her. She mainly kept her eye on her husband, who broke down in tears every once in a while, and her children, who she was trying to console at the same time. She had to be strong for all of them right now.  
  
Arriving back at the house, they greeted their guests at the entrance and accepted the many condolences offered.  
  
"Tsukushi.Hiro." At the sound of their names, the couple looked up to see Tsukushi's parents standing before them. Tsuskushi's mom hugged the daughter she had not seen in ten years. She was so happy to see them. Her dad, mom, Susumu and his family were there. Tsukushi missed them terribly. They visited her in Boston every five or ten years, so it had been awhile since they'd seen each other. Tsukushi was so happy to be in the arms of her family.  
  
Walking in behind her parents, Tsukushi saw her old friends. Rui, Soujiro, Akira, Tsubaki, Shigeru, Sakurako, Kazuya and their significant others were all there. Though it was a time of sadness, Tsukushi was relieved and felt so much better that her closest friends were there for her and her family. She hugged them all and thanked them for coming.  
  
"Please come in and help yourselves to what we have to offer. Thank you for coming." Hiro said as they all walked inside.  
  
Mariko and Ken were thrilled to see their grandparents and all their aunts and uncles. They sat around in the south wing's sitting area talking about how the children have grown.  
  
"You look just like your mother," Soujiro said speaking to Mariko, "but you're much more beautiful."  
  
Mariko just blushed and said thank you. Their grandparents asked about school and everything else that's been happening in their lives.  
  
"So where are all the kids at?" Mariko asked, looking for her childhood friends.  
  
"We decided it was best if they stayed at home. You'll get to see them soon enough Mariko-chan." Shigeru answered.  
  
After a few moments, Hiro said, "Tsukushi, I believe that is all the guests. Let's go in. It's getting cold."  
  
As they turned to go in, one more limosuine pulled up to the door. Tsukushi turned around to see none other than Doumyoji Kaede step out with her husband. Tsukushi's legs went weak, but Hiro helped support her.  
  
The Doumyoji couple made it up the steps and bowed to both Hiro and Tsukushi.  
  
"We are terribly sorry for your loss and give our sympathy. Your father was a great man." Doumyoji-san spoke.  
  
"Thank you for coming. Please come in." Hiro said politely.  
  
Tsukushi could feel Kaede's evil eyes on her, but it was not the most appropriate time to bring up the past, Tsukushi thought. So for today, she would not be bothered by this woman's presence.  
  
The four walked into the sitting area and when they entered, Rui, Akira, Soujiro and the rest halted in whatever they were saying or doing.  
  
"What's wrong? Uhh.Uncle Akira?" Mariko said waving her hand in front of him.  
  
"Who are they?" Ken asked, but still received no answer as they all froze. In shock? Or in terror?  
  
"Mariko.Ken.Come here please." The two approached their parents.  
  
"May I introduce you to the Doumyoji's. These are my children, Mariko and Ken." Hiro spoke.  
  
Both Mariko and Ken bowed deeply.  
  
"They are beautiful children Nagane-san." Kaede spoke. Tsukushi's face froze, as she actually heard the witch give a compliment.  
  
"Thank you Doumyoji-sama." Mariko replied.  
  
The Nagane children left their parents and attended back to the many guests at the house.  
  
After she made sure all her guests were situated, Tsukushi headed over to where her friends and family were.  
  
"Tsukushi, why is she here?" Shigeru asked quietly somehow thinking Kaede could hear her every word. To this day, that woman still set fear in their hearts. Tsukushi stared at friend without an answer.  
  
"Sorry Tsukasa couldn't make it. He got.uh.tied up at work" Akira said.  
  
"You don't have to lie for that idiot brother of mine Akira." Tsubaki said glaring at Akira for lying. "He's at home Tsukushi. He didn't feel it would be appropriate to come here after all this time, but he does send his deepest regrets."  
  
Tsukasa.Tsukushi hadn't heard his name in so long, but it didn't mean she forgot about him. She would always remember him and the love they shared. They said they were friends, but she hadn't heard from him since the day she left for Boston. Tsukushi sighed and tried to push him out of her head for now, but Hiro sensed her uneasiness about the subject of Tsukasa.  
  
They talked some more, catching up with everything. Tsukushi loved the fact that her friends didn't treat her any different, thought they barely saw each other over the years. It was like she had never been gone at all and that put a smile on her face. Her friends occasionally visited Tsukushi and her family during business trips or just family vacations. Their children were all friends and kept in touch with each other over the years.  
  
Hours later, guests began to leave.  
  
"Thank you for your support and care." Hiro and Tsukushi said as guests began clearing out the house. Both Mariko and Ken were exhausted and when the last guest left, they said good night to their parents. Ken started to walk away, but Mariko stayed back.  
  
"Kaa-san, who was that Doumyoji woman?"  
  
Not really knowing how to answer, "She...well...She and her husband run the Doumyoji Corporation. Why do you ask?"  
  
"Well, she looked kinda scary and when the two of them walked in, everyone I was sitting with just froze and stopped talking. I was just wondering why she had that effect on them. That's all. Well..Good night Kaa-san!" She hugged her mother and left the room. Mariko hugged her father good night as well when she ran into him in the hallway. 'This was a long day' she thought.  
  
  
  
"Tsukushi, what's wrong?" Hiro asked his wife who had a lost look on her face as they lay in bed that night.  
  
"Nothing anata." she looked up and knew that answer wasn't enough ".I was just thinking that's all."  
  
"About?" Hiro questioned. "Is it Tsukasa?" Tsukushi froze. Her husband knew her all too well.  
  
Hiro sighed, "Don't worry about it right now. Get some rest now. You've had a long day." He kissed her as he tried to fall asleep. She was thinking about Tsukasa. Hiro knew that was inevitable, but he understood. He knew Tsukushi would always have a place in her heart for him, and even though he was always a little jealous, he knew it would never get in the way of what he and Tsukushi shared now. 


	4. First Days

As usual, standard disclaimers apply ^_^  
  
Ch. 3-First Days  
  
Sunday came all too soon. It was pretty cool outside and the sun shone brightly through the windows of Mariko's room. She was rolled up in a ball trying to keep herself warm and hidden from the light. Mariko had been so tired the past few days. After the funeral, the Nagane's spent the following days unpacking their luggage and the boxes arriving from Boston daily. Mariko and Ken had a break Saturday and decided to go out and wander the streets of Tokyo. They went to the local shops and did some serious damage, buying all the latest clothing and shoes in style. Ken wasn't much of a shopper, but he was in a new place and there were lots of things there he hadn't seen in America.  
  
Ken came bursting through Mariko's door to wake her up. "Hey sleepy head.you gotta wake up now." Pulling the covers off her. "Mom said we gotta go get our uniforms for school tomorrow." "Ugh.don't remind me" Mariko groaned at the mention of school. She sat up and looked at her brother. He couldn't help but laugh at how disheveled her long hair was. "What's so funny?" Mariko demanded. "First off, your breath stinks and second.your hair looks like a hair stylists nightmare." -WHACK- Mariko had thrown a pillow at him and hit him pretty hard in the face. "GET OUT!"  
  
"Are you serious Kaa-san? We have to wear these?? They're so ugly. I know I don't look ugly in anything I wear, but can't we wear whatever we want? I just went shopping. Where am I supposed to wear all the new clothes?" Mariko complained looking at herself in the mirror wearing her new uniform. She was wearing a short navy blue skirt with a yellow sweater vest over a white long-sleeve button down shirt. Tsukushi noticed they made a change in the uniform over the years.  
  
"They look better now than they did back then Mariko. Before, we had to wear these skirts and they were a little bit longer than the skirt you're wearing now. We also had to wear this big suit jacket over a white shirt. Trust me Mariko-chan, what you're wearing looks MUCH better." Mariko tried to protest, but one look from her mom told her to quit complaining.  
  
"You went to our high school? What's it like? Did you like it?" Mariko asked non-stop at hearing this new revelation. Tsukushi was suddenly reminded of her times at Eitokou. She met them all there. That's where she made all her closest friends. All she wanted was to get through the high school without being noticed, but things didn't turn out the way she had planned.  
  
She smiled at her daughter and said, "One day I'll tell you the story Mariko-chan. Let's just say that I had the very best and at the same time, the very worst years of my life there." It was the only answer she was prepared to tell her daughter.  
  
Mariko turned to Ken. "Oi, Nii-san.that looks pretty good on you! I bet all these girls are gonna stare at you and try to get with you." She laughed, because inside she knew it was the truth. Her brother always got all sorts of attention from the girls at their old high school and she doubted this school would be any different.  
  
Ken's uniform wasn't as bad. He looked quite handsome in the school uniform. Navy slacks and a white button down. The sweater vest was optional to him, but to be fair, Tsukushi made him wear it. "If Mariko has to be in full uniform, then so do you. No more complaints." She eyed them both. "Is that understood?"  
  
"Hai Okaa-san." The two said walking away changing out of the uniforms.  
  
-Knock Knock- "Mariko-san, It's Hana-chan. I am here to wake you and prepare you for school." Hana listened for an answer but didn't hear one, so she went in to find Mariko still in bed sleeping. She did the only thing she knew to wake the young woman up. Hana pulled the curtains open to let all the sun in. It worked, because Mariko was up in no time, groaning about having to get up so early. Hana laid Mariko's uniform out as Mariko began her day.  
  
Ken was already downstairs eating breakfast when Mariko came down in her uniform. "Aweee.don't you just look so cute Riko-chan" Ken teased as she entered the breakfast area. "Shut up" She glared back at him. "It's too early for you to be bugging me." She stuck her tongue out at him and started eating her breakfast.  
  
Their parents soon came in and joined Ken and Mariko at the table. "Good morning Otou-san..Okaa-san" The two greeted their parents. "Good morning. Are you two ready for your first day?" Their parents asked.  
  
"Your mother and I will be escorting you both to school today. Your mother is familiar with the campus, so she can help us find our way around to the headmaster's office. Also, we need to make sure they've received all your records"  
  
Breakfast ended, and they were on their way to Eitokou. For some reason, Tsukushi was nervous. She was returning to Eitokou, this time it was for her children. Though she hated to admit it, Eitokou was a very good school and she knew her children would receive the best education there. She was against it, but Hiro insisted. It was for the sake of their children, so she couldn't go against it. It was quiet in the car and only two of the passengers knew the reason why. Hiro held Tsukushi's hand, trying to calm her nerves. The car stopped as they were in front of the school now. Tsukushi stepped out, looking at the gates before her. 'It's still the same' she thought.  
  
The four walked into Eitokou. Tskushi took a deep breath. Mariko and Ken walked behind their parents and every student stopped, staring at the four walking by. Many whispers of 'Who are they' or 'That girl's hot' and 'That guy's so cute' were heard as they walked. Mariko and Ken just smiled at each other knowing all the glances they were getting. They were loving the attention. After arriving at the headmaster's office and getting Mariko and Ken settled with their classes, Hiro and Tsukushi stood to leave.  
  
"I assure my children are in good hands then?" Hiro asked the headmaster. "Of course Nagane-san." The headmaster bowed as Hiro and Tsukushi walked out. "We will see you two later. Let us know ahead of time whether you want to walk or have a car sent for you." Hiro said to his children. " Hai Otou-san. Bye Okaa-san!" Mariko said running up to her mother and giving her a quick hug before they left.  
  
Mariko and Ken were left in the headmaster's office. "Two students are on their way here now to show you both to your classes."  
  
-Knock Knock- "Come in" Mariko and Ken turned their heads to see who was going to show them around. A young girl about Mariko's age walked in with a guy who looked about Ken's age.  
  
"RYU-KUN!!!!!!!" Mariko squealed as she ran to the boy who walked in and threw her arms around him. "It's so good to see you! I didn't know you went to this school too. Nii- san LOOK! It's Ryu-Kun!" "Yes Riko-chan, I know who he is. How ya doin Ryu?" Ken said as he shook Ryu's hand. Hanazawa Ryu. The three of them always hung out whenever Ryu came to visit Boston with his parents. Sometimes, Ryu would even spend the whole summer at Ken and Mariko's house.  
  
"I see you already know Hanazawa Ryu." The headmaster interrupted their happy reunion. "The young lady here is Tanaka Aya." Ken stopped to look at the girl, and she felt her cheeks redden as she felt Ken's eyes on her. 'She's pretty cute' Ken thought. Aya was much shorter than Mariko, but had the most intense blue eyes. Her long black hair just accentuated her features even more. Smiling, he held his hand out to shake her hand.  
  
Their hands met and in sync said " It's nice to meet you." Mariko noticed this interaction and a mischievous grin spread across her face.  
  
"Nagane-san, she is in your grade and she'll be happy to show you around. If you have any questions, she can answer them for you. Now I suggest you all head to class now."  
  
The four students headed out the office doors and went their separate ways.  
  
"I'll see you at lunch Riko-chan. You'll be joining us right Aya-chan?" Ken looked over at the girl shocked at being asked to have lunch with the new guy.  
  
"Y-ye-yes.I'll be there. Thank you." Aya stammered, blushing that Ken had used her first name. "Bye Ryu-kun. See ya later!" Mariko waved at her brother and Ryu as they walked to class.  
  
"Aya-chan!" Mariko said cheerily "You think my brother's cute don't you." She teased. "I saw the way you were looking at him."  
  
Aya's face turned redder than a fire lobster as she answered "I..was..not.LOOKING.him in any 'way'"  
  
Smiling at Aya's response, the two walked into their first class. Aya walked up to the teacher with Mariko following close behind. She could feel all eyes on her. 'I mean who in their right mind wouldn't look at me?' she thought smiling to herself.  
  
"Class this is Nagane Mariko. She's a new transfer student" Pointing to an empty seat, "Nagane-san, you may take that empty seat there next to Tanaka- san."  
  
As she walked to her seat, she could hear EVERYONE talking about her, looking at her. She was beautiful and she knew it. She couldn't help it. Everyone tried talking to her, but it was probably because of her family name, not really because they wanted to befriend her. She looked over to Aya for help, but Aya just giggled at all the attention her new friend was getting.  
  
The rest of the day up to lunch was like that. The students were all talking 'That's the Nagane girl?' 'Have you seen her brother?? He's so hot' When Mariko heard girls talk about her brother, she just wanted to laugh, as she knew it would be like this. Too bad she knew these girls had no chance in hell with her brother.  
  
Ken was with Ryu the whole day. At lunch they walked to the gardens where Ryu's friends were eating. "Oi Ryu! I hear there's a new girl here at school. Heard she's a real knock- out too." Nishikado Shinji said and was interrupted by Mimasaka Aki "Yeah. All the guy's are talking about the new first year girl. Have you seen her Ryu??" Aki looked passed Ryu and saw another guy standing there.  
  
"KEN! Holy shit! I didn't know you'd be goin here." Shinji said running up to his old friend.  
  
"How are you doing Ken? It's been a long time since we last saw each other." Aki said, giving his friend a hug.  
  
"Sorry we couldn't make it to the funeral. Our parents said it would be best if we stayed home." Ryu explained.  
  
"Don't worry about it guys. I understand. You wouldn't have wanted to be there anyway. It was just too sad." Ken's head dropped slightly, remembering that day.  
  
"So that means- Shinjji's words were cut off as he two cute girls walking towards them. One was tall and very pretty and the other was shorter, but rather cute as well. He nudged Aki and pointed his head in the two girls' direction.  
  
"RYU-KUN!! NII-SAN!!" Mariko called out to them. Mariko rushed dragging her new friend by the hand. "Mariko-chan?!" Aki and Shinji asked in unison. They could hardly recognize the girl, well young lady now. She was growing up, and growing up very nicely, thought Shinji.  
  
"How did you find us?" Ryu asked.  
  
"Oh, Aya-chan here knew where you guys would be." Aya's face reddened.  
  
"Aki-kun! Shinji-kun!." The two boys raced over to greet her. Shinji took her left hand and placed a kiss on it.  
  
"How's it goin, beautiful?" Mariko rolled her eyes and played along with him. Mariko threw her arms around Shinji's neck and gave him a warm hug, then turning to Aki and giving him a friendly hug as well.  
  
"Things are going okay. The kids at this school are annoying and overly fake. I can't stand how they're all kissing my ass because I'm a Nagane."  
  
"Oh guys! This is my friend Aya-chan." Mariko introduced Aya to the guys. Aya's face was red once again as she blushed profusely in front of the guys.  
  
They all sat and ate lunch together. Aki and Shinji were asking question after question until Ken got annoyed by them hitting on his sister. These guys were Mariko's childhood buddies. She used to be the little tomboy who played basket ball with them during the summer.  
  
"You think you could cut down on flirting with the boys Riko-chan?" "Gee Nii-san you're no fun." Mariko said as she giggled and stood to leave. "Yeah Ken, you're no fun." Shinji chided in. "We haven't seen Mariko-chan in so long and we're just catching up." "I know what you guys are thinking. So stop while you're at it." Ken said defensively.  
  
"Aya-chan, should we go now?" Aya nodded her head and rose. "We'll see you guys after school. Bye guys!!"  
  
Walking back to class, Aya was too quiet, so Mariko asked her what was wrong. "Mariko, do you know who those guys are?" Mariko looked at her clueless. "Duh Aya-chan, they're my friends. I've known them since I was little."  
  
"No, those guys are the F4. They're the best looking guys at this school and they're the richest too. Everyone's scared of them because of their leader." Mariko just laughed.  
  
"Those guys?? Leader? Hahahahaha.Are you serious Aya-chan??" She nodded. "No way, those guys couldn't hurt a fly.Wait a minute.where's the 4th one? I only know three and its obvious that my brother isn't the fourth one." Aya froze.  
  
"Oh.he's the worst. You don't want to meet him. He thinks just because he's rich he can do whatever he wants at this school. He's just a mean bully, and a lot of kids got beat up by him and the other three for stupid things."  
  
"He better not flaunt his money in my face, because I bet my family's richer than his." Mariko tried to make her new friend smile. "Don't you worry Aya-chan. If any of them pick on you, they'll have to deal with me first."  
  
"Really Mariko-chan? You mean it? You'll be my friend?"  
  
"Of course, I thought we were already friends?" The two smiled and continued to class.  
  
After their last class, Mariko and Aya were walking to their lockers. Mariko was too busy talking to Aya to notice the guy walking directly in front of her. They crashed into each other and fell back. Aya luckily caught her friend before she hit the floor.  
  
"Oh excuse me. I'm sorry about-" Mariko said apologetically to the fallen boy feeling bad for not seeing him.  
  
"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!" The hot tempered boy yelled as he stood up. Aya hid behind Mariko as she knew this meant trouble for Mariko.  
  
"EXCUSE ME? I should watch where I'm going? You were at fault here too ya know. I'm not the only one with eyes." Mariko fought back.  
  
"Do you know who you're talking to little girl?" He grabbed a hold of Mariko's shoulder. "Do you think I care who you are?" She retorted while pushing his hand off her shoulder. "And nobody said you could touch me. Don't make that mistake again." 'Who the hell does this idiot think he is? Bastard.' She thought to herself as she turned around to find Aya.  
  
"I'm not yet done with you little girl." The stupid boy grabbed her arm and threw her against the locker.  
  
"Yes you are" Mariko said as she punched the stupid boy square in the face with all her might. He fell back and looked back up at this girl. "I told you not to make that same mistake again. Now leave me alone." A crowd had now gathered around the couple fighting. As the boy raised his hand to hit her, a teacher intervened.  
  
"Both of you. The headmaster's office. NOW." "But." The two said and then glared at each other with narrowed eyes.  
  
The two sat next to each other in the headmaster's office waiting for their parents to arrive. The headmaster sat in front of the two waiting for one or other to talk, but neither did as they both turned away from each other.  
  
"Nagane Mariko, this is Doumyoji Kesshin. Doumyoji Kesshin, Nagane Mariko." The two still looked away.  
  
'Doumyoji? That name sounds familiar.' Mariko thought as she sat looking away from that idiot who caused her to get into trouble her first day. 'Oh that's right..at the funeral. Doumyoji was that woman's name too. I wonder what the relation is.' She glared daggers at him, ready to attack anytime.  
  
'Nagane? Dammit.Otou-san's gonna be mad at me. He's got close relations with Nagane International.' Kesshin thought as he realized who she was. 'I'm so dead.'  
  
The door flew open as a tall man with dark curly hair came barging in.  
  
"What is this all about Kesshin?!" Doumyoji Tsukasa questioned his son immediately. "How many times have I told you to stay out of trouble? That fights were stupid and unnecessary." At that moment, Tsukasa noticed the young girl sitting next to his son.  
  
"Makino.." Mariko looked up at the man. Just then, Tsukushi barged through the same door Tsukasa had minutes ago.  
  
"Mariko-chan are you allright?" She asked concerned about her daughter. The school called and told her that Mariko had gotten into a fight and Tsukushi was needed at the school. She rushed to the school worried about her little girl.  
  
"Makino..." At the sound of that voice.her name was being called.She turned to face him. "Dou-my-oji" was all she could say as she stared at the man in shock. How was Tsukushi to react to this current situation. She looked away to break the gaze she and Tsukasa held. 'He's still the same, doesn't even look like he's aged' she thought, smiling inwardly.  
  
The boy and the girl looked at their respectful parent confused as to what was going on. 'Ahem' the headmaster cleared his throat. "Doumyoji-sama.Nagane-sama.please have a seat."  
  
"Now, would you two like to explain what happened earlier?"  
  
The two broke out at the same time "That girl started it" "NO I DID NOT. YOU DID" The two stood, ready to go at it again. "Kesshin, SIT DOWN." At his father's words, the boy sat. Mariko smirked but wiped it off her face as she saw her mother giving her 'that look.'  
  
"Mariko-chan what happened?" Tsukushi asked, knowing very well her daughter was not going to lie to her.  
  
Mariko sighed. "I was walking with my new friend down the hall, and I wasn't looking. Well this big idiot and I ran into each other. I said excuse me but then he threw a fit and started yelling asking me if I knew who he was. Then he called me a little girl and when I talked back and called him an idiot, he got mad and grabbed my arm and threw me against the locker, so I punched him. He was gonna hit me, but the teacher came and made us come here. Is that good enough?"  
  
"Kesshin, is this girl telling the truth?" His father asked sternly. The poor boy bent his head down and nodded in agreement to the girl's story.  
  
Tsukasa rose, "Mariko-chan, I apologize for my son's behavior. I hope you are okay and not hurt." He said towering over her.  
  
"I.I am fine Doumyoji-san. Thank you and I'm sorry for punching your son in the face.even if he did deserve it." Mariko muttered the last bit of her sentence.  
  
"Kesshin-kun, are you allright?" Tsukushi asked the young boy, who was the spitting image of his father. She smiled inwardly at the resemblance. Tsukushi's face saddened as she remembered her Doumyoji back then. "Mak.I mean Nagane-sama. It is good to see you again. You are looking well. " Doumyoji forced a smile and held his hand out to his old friend. 'I've missed you' he thought as he stared at this woman before him.  
  
"It is nice seeing you as well Doumyoji." Tsukushi smiled and shaking his hand. 'Just like the last time we saw each other'. "Well, we better get going, Mariko," Mariko rose and followed her mother out.  
  
Walking back to the car, Mariko was full of questions. "You know that man kaa-san? He called me Makino when he first looked at me. What's wrong kaa- san?" Mariko noticed the saddened look on her mother's face.  
  
"Mariko, your father is going to have to know about this, but just make sure it doesn't happen again. Is that clear?" She nodded. Tsukushi thought it would be best to tell her daughter the story now. She knew she couldn't hide it forever. "And that man, Doumyoji Tsukasa, was my first love." Mariko stopped dead in her tracks with her mouth gaped open hearing what her mother just said.  
  
"You were in love with him? If you loved him.what happened?" at her daughters words, Tsukushi stopped. She could no longer cry over this man. She had done so for so many months back then.  
  
"I'll tell you later. Let's just go home and let me tell your father about today okay?" They had arrived at the house and stepped inside.  
  
Ken came running to his sister. "RIKO-CHAN! What happened?? I heard you got into a fight with some guy. Are you okay? Did you kick his ass??" He asked all the questions hugging her at the same time.  
  
"Who's this jerk anyways? Man I'm gonna find his ass and beat him down for touching you."  
  
"I'm fine Nii-san. Kaa-san and I took care of it. Can ya let go now. I can't breathe." Mariko caught her breath as Ken let go. She went to her room to freshen up before her father came home.  
  
Tsukushi retreated to her room, rethinking today's events. It really was good to see him again. She knew she would have to tell Hiro about this, but she wasn't sure how he would take it. Tsukushi knew a part of Hiro was mad at Tsukasa for causing Tsukushi so much pain, but then again, it wasn't Tsukasa's fault he had amnesia. To think, her daughter and his son would get into the same kind of fights she and tsukasa used to get into. Tsukushi laughed at the thought.  
  
At dinner, Hiro was furious "WHAT did I tell you? Do you not remember me telling you specifically to stay out of trouble??" "Yes Otou-san.." Mariko knew she was in for it. It was only her first day and she had already gotten into a big fight with none other than Doumyoji Kesshin. "Mariko-chan.it's a good thing you were not hurt, but please, stay out of trouble. You are excused."  
  
"Don't worry Riko-chan, I'll take care of him" Ken whispered as Mariko walked by.  
  
"YOU CERTAINLY WILL NOT TAKE CARE OF HIM!" Hiro roared, banging his fist on the dinner table. Ken froze at his father's anger.  
  
"I told you NOT to do anything that would disgrace this family's name. This childish behavior is unacceptable. I assure you that this boy will be dealt with accordingly, but neither of you will have anything to do with it." Tsukushi tried to calm her husband down. "Have I made myself clear?"  
  
"Hai." Ken said, excusing himself from the table, not wanting to upset Hiro any more.  
  
"Who was this boy anyway Tsukushi?" Hiro asked when Ken and Mariko left the room. Tsukushi nearly choked on the water she was drinking.  
  
"Anata, it was Doumyoji Kesshin.." Tsukushi half closed her eyes unsure of her husband's reaction to that name.  
  
"Doumyoji-san's son huh? Well, I can't just let him get away with hurting Mariko like that."  
  
"Anata, everything was taken care of. The boy apologized, plus he didn't even hurt her. Mariko punched him before he had the chance to-"  
  
"Did you see Doumyoji-san?" Hiro interrupted and Tsukushi nodded.  
  
"We apologized to each other about our children's behavior and said it was nice seeing each other again." Tsukushi smiled as she saw a twinge of jealousy on her sweet husband's face.  
  
"Ahh.Doumyoji Tsukasa." Hiro muttered.  
  
She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him sweetly. "I love you anata. You're so cute when you get like that."  
  
Mariko lay in bed with the moonlight beaming in her room and she fell asleep, not looking forward to tomorrow. 


	5. Memories

Standard disclaimers apply. I do not and never shall own HYD. I'm just a strugglin college student who writes to relieve herself of stress and at this point in my life, I've got plenty of it. ^_^

Note: There are some spoilers in here. If you haven't read the latest manga, this will spoil it for you. You have been warned. ^_^

Ch. 4-Memories 

Weeks had passed and the Nagane children were adjusting to Eitouku nicely. Ken didn't let that incident between Mariko and Kesshin slide by though. He chose to ignore his father's warning and approached Kesshin the next day. The two boys got into a tiny scuffle during lunch, but were pulled apart by Aki, Shinji and Ryu. Kesshin and Ken eventually smoothed things over and were able to tolerate each other's company. Ken couldn't fully blame Kesshin, because his sister never keeps her cool. Mariko's got a temper and a mind of her own that just can't be controlled. 

Other than that incident, everyday was the same. Mariko and Kesshin did their best to avoid each other, but managed to trade snide remarks every once in a while. It was hard at lunch, considering they all sat together. The others would just tease the two, making Mariko and Kesshin even more annoyed. 

"Oi Kesshin! She doesn't bite ya know, unless you want her to." Shinji joked and smiled mischievously. He didn't find it too funny though when both Kesshin and Mariko punched him in the face and sent Shinji flying back against the bushes. Ryu couldn't help but laugh, because it was the funniest thing he'd seen all week. Shinji had teased them everyday and wished Mariko or Kesshin would do something about it. Mariko and Kesshin looked back at each other and burst into laughter, laughing so hard that tears began to well up in their eyes. Aya, Ken and Aki looked up from their conversation to see Shinji attempting to stand up, and their other three friends laughing hysterically. 

"Now will you two kiss and make up?" Ryu asked.

"Ryu-kun…" Mariko said sweetly. "Do you want to end up like Shinji-kun over there?" Ryu gulped and shook his head vigorously. "That's what I thought." Mariko said, turning back to her lunch. 

Kesshin faced Mariko "I guess you're not all that bad, but I'm still not apologizing for your mistake. Just watch where you're going next time." Mariko was about to fume again, but maintained her composure, hearing her mom and dad yelling inside her head.

"UGH! YOU ARE SO STUPID!" Mariko stood and left with Aya.

"Ken, what's wrong with your sister?" Kesshin asked as Mariko stormed off with Aya following behind her.

.

"I think she likes you." Kesshin froze.

'She likes me?' he thought 'But then again, who wouldn't. I am the great Doumyoji Kesshin.' Kesshin smirked and ended up saying, "I hope not."

"Why not Kesshin? Man, Mariko's hot. Hell if you don't want her, I'll take her." Aki said.

"Can you guys quit talking about my sister like that? That's sick." Ken gagged.

It was the weekend now and Mariko could finally rest. The house was so quiet as Hiro and Ken went on a fishing trip for the weekend. Mariko figured this would be the best time to ask her mother about Tsukasa. 

Tsuskushi was in her room when she heard a knock at the door. 

"Okaa-san?"

"Come in Mariko-chan." Tsukushi answered her daughter's call. Mariko entered and sat next to her mom on the bed.

"Can I ask you about Doumyoji-san now?" Tsukushi gasped, but knew this conversation would come up eventually. 

Tsukushi sighed and nodded, ready to reveal her deepest secrets. "It all started when I first entered Eitouku High. I avoided the limelight of the school. I didn't want to be noticed by anyone, but things didn't go as I planned…" Mariko listened intently as her mother told her the story of her life before she came to America. Tsukushi told Mariko about her first encounter with the F4 and the arrogant Doumyoji Tsukasa. 

"I stood up to him and from that day, hell started for me. I was red-tagged by the F4 and when your Uncle Kazuya came along, he was tagged as well, just because we were friends. Then that boy had the audacity to dress me up and tell me I should be honored that he was even talking to me!"

"Sounds like Kesshin-kun" Mariko spoke outloud. "Like father like son I guess."

"He seemed like such a nice man when I met him kaa-san." Mariko interrupted. Tsukushi just laughed. If her daughter only knew. She continued to tell Mariko about her love for Hanazawa Rui, and how his heart still belonged to Shizuka. 

"You were in love with Uncle Rui too???" Mariko stared at her mom with wide eyes shocked at what she was hearing. Tsukushi just looked at her. "Okay okay..I'll be quiet…" Mariko said.

Tsukushi then talked about Doumyoji and the witch from hell, Kaede. Mariko laughed at what Tsukushi referred to Doumyoji Kaede as. That was Mariko's first impression of Kaede, but out of respect for the woman, she said nothing. Tsukushi told Mariko of the many times Tsukasa saved her do many times. She had no idea why he always came for her, saving her. 'Geez, she's slow' Mariko thought of her mom. 

"One day he rescued me from these jerks who thought it would be funny to tie me to a car and drag me around in circles. Doumyoji came and carried me back to his house and bandaged my wounds. That night, he told me loved me." Tsukushi paused reminiscing on that moment, in his bedroom, on his bed. 

"I was shocked at what he said. I didn't want to believe it, because why would some guy who could have any woman in the world, want me. Then he cupped my face and brought his lips to mine. At that moment, I wanted to break away, but at the same time, I didn't want it to end. I felt like I didn't belong anywhere else but there with him." Tsukushi still held those memories deep in her heart. 

"Did you tell him you loved him??"

"No…not that night…" Tsukushi smiled. "One night there was a gathering at your Uncle Soujiro's house. After drinking a bit, I mustered up the courage to tell him I loved him, and I did it in front of everyone. I remember staring into his eyes as he walked towards me, never breaking eye contact, and then pulling me into his embrace."

"Awwe…That's so sweet!!!!" Mariko couldn't help but grin broadly at her mother's story. It really was the sweetest thing she'd ever heard. 

Tsukushi felt so good telling Mariko everything. It had been in her mind and her heart for so many years. Sure, she told Hiro about Tsukasa and the events that led her to leave Japan, but she never told Hiro what she was telling Mariko now. Tsukushi felt that Hiro would not truly understand her when it came to Tsukasa. Hiro just thought of him as a jerk for forgetting someone so wonderful as Tsukushi, but then sometimes, he'd like to thank Tsukasa, because if he hadn't forgotten, Hiro would never have met Tsukushi. Mariko gave her mom a weird look as Tsukushi hugged her daughter without saying a word. 'Thank you' thought Tsukushi in that moment.

So the story continued and Tsukushi told Mariko about the events that led her to leave. Tsukasa had come back from New York against his mother's wishes. While Tsukushi and he were in a guest house, SP's located them, abducted the two, and shipped them off on a mysterious yacht. When the boat stopped, they were on an island. After searching the island, they ran into Shigeru, Rui, Akira, and Soujiro. It had been their plan all along, to find a way for them to be alone without any disruptions. 

Tsukushi's face changed just then, because of what happened next. When they returned to the city, a man had stabbed Tsukasa, and he was hospitalized. Tsukushi recalled her days in the hospital waiting by Tsukasa and how when he awoke, Tsukasa remembered nothing of Tsukushi. Mariko felt her mother's sadness. It was clearly shown on her face. Tsukushi not only lost the man she loved, but she lost her friend. Mariko held her mother's hand as she continued to talk about Tsukasa's amnesia and Kaede's proposal of being dead for a year. For a year, Tsukushi tried everything to bring him back to her, but she couldn't do it. She visited him everyday at the hospital and at home, till he finally told her that she was a nuisance and should leave him alone. In the end, she felt the best thing to do was leave, and so she did. 

Mariko stared at her mother, who was now crying before her. These pent up emotions were now visible as tears upon tears flowed down her face. Mariko could think of nothing else but to hold her mother as she cried for the first time in years over Doumyoji Tsukasa. 

"It's okay now okaa-san." Mariko swore and smiled at her mom as she looked up to face her daughter. 'Now I understand why she never wanted to return.' 

"Otou-san?" Kesshin asked as he peeked into his father's office hoping to speak with him for a little bit. 

"Yes Kesshin" Answered the man sitting down at his desk, looking up to see his son entering.

"Can I ask you something?" Tsukasa nodded. "How come we never went to visit Nagane-sama and her family whenever we went to America?"

"Why do you ask?" Tsukasa eyed his son, startled that he asked such a question.

"Well, Ryu, Aki, n Shinji knew Mariko-chan from before. They visit the Nagane's every couple of years, so they've known each other since they were kids." Kesshin paused "And you seem like you knew Nagane-sama pretty well, so I was just wondering why we never visited?" Kesshin shut his eyes, hoping he hadn't pried too much into his father's life.

"Nagane-sama is just some girl I knew back in high school. We had all been friends, but we lost touch with each other and so that's why we never went to visit her family." Tsukasa's heart ached at those words. Makino Tsukushi wasn't just 'some girl.' She was 'THE girl.' The only one he ever truly gave his heart to, but she would never know that. Some secrets were best left untold.

"Anything else Kesshin?" Kesshin shook his head and excused himself. "No, that's all. I was just curious. Good night Otou-san." Kesshin knew there was more to this than his father was telling. Tsukasa and his son were very close and he could sense there was something his father wasn't telling him, but he didn't want to question him any further.

As Kesshin left the office, Tsukasa' thoughts drifted to the past.

"Tsukasa…" Rui stopped him on the street one day. "You have to read this."

"What is that?" Tsukasa replied dryly.

"Just read it." 

"I don't want to."

"Dammit Tsukasa, quit being so stubborn and listen to me. You have to read this even if it means nothing to you."

In Rui's presence, Tsukasa read that letter and it was forever etched in his mind. That day, Doumyoji Tsukasa remembered her. The one woman who meant everything to him. 

Tsukasa snapped back to reality and quickly got up. 

"Hikaru-chan, please tell my wife that I have some unfinished business to take care of and that she need not wait up for me." The young maid nodded and bowed as her master left the house. 

'I have to see her'

-Knock-knock-

"Nagane-sama?" Hana-chan called through the doors. Moments later, Tsukushi opened her bedroom door and smiled at the young woman.

"Yes Hana-chan?" 

"I'm sorry to bother you so late in the evening, but there is a man waiting for you in the living room. He was very persistent and insisted on seeing you right at this very moment. I tried to tell him that it was late, but he pushed through. I'm sorry Nagane-sama." Hana-chan had said it all in one breath. 

"Who is this man?" 

"He wouldn't say. He just said that it was of great importance to see you."

"Thank you. I'll take care of this little problem." Tsukushi stormed out of her room. She was furious at this man who chose to stop by at such a late hour. 'How dare he come barging in here like that demanding to see me.' 

Tsuskushi made it downstairs and threw the large cherry oak wood doors open. 

"You have some nerve coming around here this late at night. Who do you think you are anyway?!" She yelled as she entered the room. The man standing was facing away from her, staring at the pictures on the wall. He turned around to meet the eyes of the enraged woman. Tsukushi stood there with her hands on her hips, waiting for an explanation. 

"Doumyoji?!?!" She was more than a bit surprised to see this man standing before her. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled, amused that her temper still flared so easily. Tsukasa walked over to her. "Fiesty as ever, aren't you?"

Tsukushi looked up to face him and when they're eyes met, her anger subsided. She sighed and said, "Have a seat Doumyoji." 

"Mak…I mean, Nagane, I have something I need to tell you." Tsukasa reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Tsukushi. She had a confused look on her face as she took the piece of paper and unfolded it. Her eyes skimmed what was written and realized it was the letter she had asked Rui at the airport to give Tsukasa. 

"You still have this? But, why are you giving it to me now?" Tsukushi was still confused, as Tsukasa had not yet said a word.

"I have a story to tell you and I'm sorry it's late and I apologize for arriving without calling first, but please listen to it." Tsukasa looked at her with the most sincere eyes. 'He still has the most beautiful eyes.' 

"You left for America and we were on good terms. You remember that right?" 'How could I forget?' she thought as he spoke. "Well, about two months before your wedding, Rui and I were walking and he handed me that piece of paper. He insisted that I read it…."

"You have to read this even if it means nothing to you." 

Tsukasa grabbed the piece of paper from Rui's hands and read the letter.

__

Dear Doumyoji,

I don't know where to begin and I know you don't have much patience, so I should just get to the point. This letter may mean nothing to you, because at this moment, you think I'm the most annoying person in the world, but I can't leave without telling you everything. 

I failed you. I failed US. I couldn't bring you back to me. That day you were stabbed and brought to the hospital, your mother came. We had an argument and I said some things that I now regret, but she told me that you and I could pretend she was dead for a year. It was great news, but then you had amnesia and had no idea who I was. I tried everything. You have to believe me when I say I tried. With the help of everyone, I did things to help jog your memory, but none of it worked. Every attempt I made, you ended up hating me even more. I am so sorry, Doumyoji. Please forgive me. 

It's for the best that I leave. You don't need me anymore. I know that I've always been so strong when it came to us, but I'm so tired. It's been hard on me, both physically and emotionally. My heart is broken and I must go and try to salvage what's left of it. Please understand that I have no other choice. I must move on and I know you will too. It hurts so much when I think that I will no longer feel your warm arms wrapped around me. No longer will I taste your sweet and gentle lips. I won't hear your voice or look into those eyes of yours that showed so much love for someone like me. 

Tsukasa's heart sank. 'Why do I care about this annoying girl?' Subconsciously, his eyes began to water. She left so long ago, but even now, deep inside he was missing her. 

_Before I go, I will leave you with some memories of us. Remember the red tag. It's how we met. I stood up to you because you picked on my friend, and the next day you red tagged me. Remember when you first told me you loved me. We were sitting on your bed and you had just finished patching up my cuts. _

A vision popped into Tsukasa's head. A girl sitting on his bed and she was hurt.

__

You told me you loved me and you kissed me. Not our first kiss of course, because you stole that one from me on your boat. 

A girl descending the stairs of his yacht, looking absolutely beautiful. A stunning pink dress and wavy brown hair. He closed his eyes to see it more clearly. 'The lights went off and someone kissed me.'

__

Remember when you saved me at your lodge in Canada? It was so cold, and I got lost in the snow. You found me and carried me to a lodge.

The girl who sat on his bed was now in his arms. 'She was so cold that night. I thought she was dead' thought Tsukasa. He remembered the warmth he felt within him when he held her that night. The blush that crept over his cheeks.

__

If none of that made you remember Doumyoji, I hope you remember when I first told you I loved you. We were at 

'Soujiro's.' Tsukasa saw her coming from a room, somewhat tipsy. 'She…it's that girl' The vision was still not clear in his head, but he was trying his best to make out a face. 

__

I walked out of that room and declared my love for you in front of everyone. I told you I loved you. I meant it, and I still do mean it. I love you Doumyoji Tsukasa.

'MAKINO! Oh my god. What have I done?!' Tsukasa was yelling at himself inside. He was barely standing as he continued to read the letter. She spoke of other memories and he remembered them clearly. How hurt she was when she went to New York to bring him back and he turned her away. She waited for him. She always had. 

__

Once, you told me that you would follow me into hell, that you would jump into my world if I couldn't jump into yours. I still believe in you and I always will. I'll never forget you Doumyoji Tsukasa. I don't know what else to say. This is hard enough, knowing that I won't be seeing you again. It's for the best though. Whether or not you ever remember me, Doumyoji, always know that I love you. You will always hold a place in my heart. We will both grow up and go our separate ways. I know that I'll never find someone like you. I want you to be happy Doumyoji. That's all I wish for, your happiness. Thank you for the love you have given me. I will treasure it always. Good-bye my love.

Love,

Makino Tsukushi

Tsukasa's legs went weak and he nearly collapsed. Luckily, Rui was there to hold him up.

"Oi Tsukasa! Are you okay?? What's wrong?" Rui asked his friend.

"How could I have forgotten her? Why didn't any of you make me remember? What have I done?" Doumyoji asked question after question. Rui just stared at him, unsure of what to do. Tsukasa was near tears, but mainly he was angry at himself for being so stupid. 

"You remember?" Rui's eyes grew large as he realized that Tsukasa had his memory of Tsukushi back.

"Where is she now Rui?"

"She's still in America."

"I have to get her back." Tsukasa turned to leave, but Rui pulled him back. "You can't Tsukasa." 

"What?! Why not?! I need to get back to her. Let me go Rui."

"You have a wife now."

"It doesn't matter! I have to go to her."

"Could you stand to see Ayumi cry? Could you? Don't tell me you don't love that woman Tsukasa. She's the ONLY woman you've felt anything for since Tsukushi. You can't go barging into Tsukushi's life out of nowhere and leave the woman you love now."

Rui was right. Tsukasa was in love with Ayumi. She was tough, yet so kind and generous. She cared for him deeply and they matched each other perfectly. Tsukasa couldn't just leave Ayumi. He truly did love her. Though she had the money and the name, she was so modest about it all. Ayumi could lose her entire fortune, but be completely happy because she had Tsukasa, and he felt the same about her.

Tsukasa had lost Tsukushi completely now. Too much time had past since they had last spoke. It killed him inside and he never forgave himself for causing her so much pain, for breaking her heart, and most importantly, for forgetting. He couldn't bear to see Tsukushi marry another man, so he declined the wedding invitation. Tsukasa couldn't bear to see that she was in love with another. 

When Tsukasa had calmed down, he went home and spoke to Ayumi. Tsukasa told Ayumi he remembered Makino Tsukushi. She was startled and afraid at first. Tsukaksa let her read the letter. Tsukasa looked like a total mess that evening, but after reading the letter, Ayumi held her husband and let him cry. She let him tell her all the things he remembered about Tsukushi, all the things he regretted, and how sorry he was. Ayumi felt his sorrow and his pain, and couldn't help being hurt as well. Tsukushi was the one woman Ayumi felt she could never live up to. 

Tsukasa finished his story and looked over to Tsukushi, who had remained quiet the whole time, listening intently at what Tsukasa had to say.

"Doumyoji…." Tsuskushi threw her arms around Tsukasa and cried. 'Twice in one day. I must really be getting weak' she thought as she held him. Tsukasa returned the embrace and they remained in each other's arms for what seems like forever.

"Tsukushi…I am sorry. I don't know how I can ever make it up to you. I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to visit you and your family in Boston, but I never had the courage to. I was always scared."

"For once, the great Doumyoji Tsukasa was afraid." Tsukushi smirked.

"Baka…" He said as he wiped the tears from her eyes.

"When I saw your daughter at Eitouku, I thought I was looking at you. Then you walked in and I couldn't believe it was you. You were there in front of me. I always imagined how it would be like if we ever saw you again and there you were. I just wanted to hold you then and tell you how sorry I was."

"It's okay Doumyoji, I understand. All this time, I thought you never remembered." 

"I asked the others to keep it a secret from you. I didn't want to interfere in your new life anymore, knowing how badly I destroyed it in the first place."

Tsukushi frowned, but then smiled up at him. "Friends?" She held her arms out to him once more. 

"I forgive you." Tsukasa stated. Tsukushi's eyes widened in annoyance and her arms dropped to her side.

"YOU FORGIVE ME????" Tsukasa burst out into laughter as Tsukushi attempted to hit him for the wisecrack. As she approached him, Tsukasa grabbed her and wrapped his arms around her once more.

"I love you." He whispered it so softly into her hair, but she had heard him. Tsukushi pulled back.

"Dou-" Tsukushi was cut off as Tsukasa place a finger on her lips.

"I just needed you to know that. I didn't get to tell you then and I'm not going to pass up this chance to tell you now." He smiled sadly.

"Kaa-san? Is Tou-san home now?" Mariko had opened the door. She saw her mother sitting next to a man on the couch. Mariko had just woken up and she was half asleep still, but she knew it definitely was not her father sitting there. 


	6. An Invitation

Standard Disclaimers Apply. May I remind you I am a poor college student writing to entertain those who love Hana Yori Dango as much as I do.

Ch.5-An Invitation

"Kaa-san?" Mariko asked as she peeked through the living room doors. She saw her mother sitting on the couch at 2:30 in the morning with a man who was definitely not her father. 'Who's this guy and what's he doing here so late?' Mariko was on the verge of losing her cool. 'And why is he hanging on kaa-san?'

Tsukushi saw the look on Mariko's face when she peeked inside the room.

"Mariko, come in here. Doumyoji-san and I were just talking" Mariko had a surprised look on her face thinking that Doumyoji would be the last person she expected to see with her mother right now. Tsukushi knew what her daughter was thinking, so she glared back, giving Mariko that 'I'll tell you about it later' look. 

"Good evening… or should I say Good Morning, Doumyoji-san" Mariko greeted the man who looked at her with the sweetest smile. 

"Good morning to you as well Mariko-chan. I'm sorry we woke you." 

"Oh no, you didn't. I couldn't sleep and well, I was headed to the kitchen and I heard voices in here," she said waving her hands and shaking her head, letting Tsukasa know that they were not the reason she couldn't sleep. "Well, I'm going to get something to drink. Can I get you anything Doumyoji-san?" 

"No, thank you Mariko-chan. I should be going. I didn't realize how late it was. Ayumi is going to kill me when I get home." Tsukasa said in a worry realizing that his wife was probably still up waiting for him. 

"Good night then Doumyoji-san. Take care!" said Mariko. Tsukasa returned the good night bid as Mariko left to get her drink. 

"She's a sweet kid Nagane." Tsukasa said staring as Mariko walked away. 

"Yes, I know. Thank you Doumyoji." Tsukushi replied. "Here, let me walk you out."

At the front door, Tsukasa was putting his shoes on. "Thank you for taking the time to listen to me tonight. It means a lot to me that I've talked to you and I know we can be friends again. I've truly missed you."

Tsukushi blushed. 'Why is my face flushing?' "I'm glad you came by and told me everything Doumyoji." She softly smiled and gave him a hug. Tsukasa froze, but relaxed and embraced her one final time.

"We should all have dinner one day. I'll give you a call and invite you and your family over. You and Ayumi would get along great." Tsukasa said as he walked out towards his car. He turned around and waved at Tsukushi, before she closed the door. 'Welcome back' thought Tsukasa as he drove away. 

Tsukasa entered the house as quietly as possible, in hopes of not waking Ayumi. 

"Where have you been?" A voice asked from the shadows. Tsukasa looked around, surprised.

Ayumi came out of the shadows, "Well? It's 3 a.m. Tsukasa. Where were you?"

"Ah, sorry Ayumi. I was at Nagane-san's house." Ayumi's heart stopped. 'He's been there all this time?'

"And what were you doing there?" At this point, Ayumi was more hurt and afraid than angry.

"I had to tell her that I remembered her. I had to apologize to her." Tsukasa said softly, noting the tone of his wife's voice.

"This late at night? Couldn't it have waited Tsukasa??" Ayumi cried "All Hikaru-chan told me is you had gone out. You didn't even call. And now you stand there, telling me you were at that woman's house all this time?"

"Look Ayumi, nothing happened. We just talked. That's it. Don't make it more than it really is." Tsukasa said in defense.

"Why couldn't you talk to her tomorrow?" Ayumi's face saddened.

"Because I had to tell her now! Why can't you just understand that?!" Tsukasa roared back. Ayumi froze. "I'm happy now that I've told her. You know how long I've had to keep it to myself. I needed to tell her Ayumi. I'm sorry if you don't understand that."

"I…I..I do understand. I just wanted to know where you were that's all. Plus you didn't call. You could have told me you were going there. I would have understood." Ayumi said and walked off.

"Ayumi wait!" But Ayumi had already disappeared back into the shadows. Tsukasa didn't know what to do. He knew he had hurt Ayumi just then and felt terrible for it. Tsukasa didn't think it would have been best to follow her up yet. He knew she was truly upset, and it was because of him.

'I'm such an idiot' Tsukasa thought to himself as he entered the bedroom. Ayumi was curled up in bed and crying, the muffled sound of her sobs echoed in the room. Tsukasa joined her in bed and pulled her close to him. Embracing her and stroking her hair, he whispered, "I'm sorry Ayumi." 

Ayumi's sobs died down after a while and she turned to face Tsukasa, "Tsukasa, I'm not her."

Tsukasa held his fragile wife tighter, "I know that. That's why I love you. Ayumi…" Tsukasa tilted her head up to meet his gaze "She is my past and you are my now and always. I am in love with you, not her." He kissed her softly as she smiled in return and fell asleep in his embrace.

The next day, Hiro and Ken had arrived back from their father-son fishing trip. 

Hiro found his wife in the room as she greeted him with a warm smile and a sweet kiss. 

"Anata, Doumyoji stopped by here last night." Hiro stopped. He had nothing against Tsukasa personally, but he could never forget the stories Tsukushi told him. It was always so heart breaking to see her cry. She cried so much back then and it affected him deeply. 

"And?" Hiro asked, pulling away from Tsukushi.

"He remembered long ago. He said it was two months before our wedding that he remembered me."

"Doumyoji-san remembers it all?"

"Yes, and last night, he came by to tell me that. He apologized for forgetting, for treating me so harshly, for all of it." Tsukushi sighed contently.

Hiro wasn't comfortable that Tsukasa was at the house yesterday, but his wife was happy. Her past was finally behind her, and he could see it in her face. Her past had always held her back, and now there were no more regrets, no more what ifs. 

"Well, I'm glad everything's been settled between you two." 

Mariko wasn't home when her brother and father arrived, but when she got home and went in her room, Ken was waiting for her.

"Hey Riko-chan…can I talk to you about something?" Ken asked as she walked by him dropping all her shopping bags on the floor. 

"Sure, go ahead nii-san. I'm listening. Something wrong?" 

"Do ya think Aya-chan likes me? Or would she like me?" Ken started fidgeting and stuttering. Mariko couldn't help but giggle and smile at her brother. 'How cute' she thought. "You're friends with her and all. Does she ever talk about me??" 

"Nii-san, why wouldn't she like you? Besides, she's asked about you before too." Ken's face lit up.

"SHE DOES????" Ken couldn't help but smile the cheesiest smile.

"Yups. She asks if you've got a girlfriend and she thinks you're really nice and cute. Blah blah blah…" Mariko remembered how giddy Aya was when Mariko told her Ken didn't have a girlfriend and that there wasn't anyone special back in Boston either. Aya's face lit up, because it meant she still had a chance. 

"Just ask her out on a date or something, but don't bring the F4 along." Mariko laughed thinking about all the things that could go wrong if the F4 were with her brother on a date. 

"You think she'd say yes, Riko-chan??" Mariko nodded and smiled. Her brother was such a kid when it came to women. He's had girlfriends before, but didn't know why he was so shy when it came to Aya. Ken could always joke around with her and she would ALWAYS laugh at his stories and jokes, even if nobody else thought they were funny. Ken jumped off Mariko's bed, hugged his sister and ran out her room. Now he needed to figure out just how he should ask Aya out.

The week was going by so quickly. It was Thursday now and Ken woke up extra early to make himself look good. 'I'm going to ask Aya out today' He said to himself staring in the mirror. Ken fixed his hair and sprayed some Aqua di Gio before stepping out of his room. He ran into Mariko down the hall and they headed out the door for school. 

The walk to school this morning was too quiet. Mariko was humming her favorite tune, but she noticed something was bothering Ken. 'Hmmm…he went all out today…cologne…new haircut…wonder what for….' Then it hit her. 'Aya!'

"What's the occasion Nii-san?" She knew, but it was fun teasing Ken about this. Never had he been so nervous around a girl, Mariko just thought it was too cute. "Are you going to ask Aya out today?" Ken froze. 

"Y…yeah…I'm going to do it. I just want to look my best." 

"Ah…I see…." 

Later that morning, Tsukushi was walking past the front door when she heard a noise. 'Did someone just knock on the door or am I hearing things?' She heard the knock again, so she walked over and opened the door. Standing before her was a tall and extremely beautiful woman. She had long black hair, tied up in a pony tail with amazing green eyes. Tsukushi was even stunned at this sight. The woman was dressed casually in jeans and a red sweater with a black peacoat over, but she was still so beautiful.

"Nagane Tsukushi?" The woman spoke as Tsukushi snapped out of her thoughts. 

"Y-Yes?" Tsukushi stuttered.

"Hello Nagane-san. I am Doumyoji Ayumi." Tsukushi was in shock. 'Tsukasa's wife?' She was thinking again.'Someone this beautiful fell in love with that idiot?'

"Doumyoji Ayumi?" The woman nodded. Tsukushi wondered what she was doing here. "Please come in. I'm so sorry. I was just…" At a loss for words Tsukushi let Ayumi in. 

The two women walked into the living room. "Please have a seat." Ayumi sat and removed her coat. 

"Hana-chan, can you please bring us some tea?" Hana nodded and minutes later arrived with the tea.

"So, what brings you here today Doumyoji-san?" 

"Please just call me Ayumi." Tsukushi nodded and handed her a cup of tea.

"Well…" Ayumi began. "Tsukasa told me he stopped by here one night to talk to you. He's told me everything about your past relationship with him. When he first told me about you, I have to say that I was hurt. He was so upset and broken because of what happened between you two. It hurt to see my husband going crazy over a woman who was a part of his past. And I asked myself over and over: How was I supposed to live up to a woman like you?" Tsukushi heart was pacing. 'What's Ayumi getting at?' 

"But I realized, I'm not you. And Tsukasa fell in love with me because of me." Tsukushi just continued to listen. "I was upset that he came over here the other night. I thought I was going to lose him again because you had come back into his life. I was just being paranoid. I should have more faith in Tsukasa than that. He was just so happy that his past was lifted off his shoulders. He was so happy when he came home that night, and here I was giving him a hard time." Ayumi was fidgeting. She was so nervous talking to Tsukushi. 

"Nagane-san…"

"Tsukushi is just fine."

"Ah, Tsukushi…I came over today because I wanted to meet you. He's always wanted us to visit your family, but he never felt like it was the best thing to do. I'm sorry we couldn't attend your wedding. Tsukasa was still not at his best. But, he looks so much happier now that he's gained your friendship once again." Ayumi smiled. 

"I felt the same way, Ayumi. It had been hard not hearing from him. He had been one of my best friends and then all of a sudden he wasn't. It was hard on me, but I'm sure you know about all that." Tsukushi spoke. 

"I wanted to get to know you better. We have so many years to catch up on. Rui and the others think so highly of you and always bring you up when they get the chance."

"Plus, I would like to personally invite you and your family to dinner tomorrow night at our house. Tsukasa suggested it, and I think it would give us all a chance to talk and get to know each other better. " 'Is she serious?' Tsukushi thought. 

"Ah…I…I would have to ask my husband first, but I think it's a great idea. Thank you for the invitation. I'll give Hiro a call and then I'll get back to you as soon as possible."

"That's not a problem at all." Ayumi said.

"So, how many children do you have?" Ayumi asked. "I've met Ken-kun before, because he has been over at the house several times. I suppose he is friends with Kesshin." Tsukushi nodded. 

"I only have Ken and Mariko. Mariko is 15, but she's quick to remind you that she will be 16 in 3 months and 4 days." Ayumi laughed. "I have met your son, Kesshin. He and Mariko had a sort of…run-in… at school, so when I came to pick her up, he was there with Doumyoji in the headmaster's office." Ayumi arched her eyebrow. 'I'll have to ask Tsukasa about this little run in'

"He looks just like Doumyoji. I thought I was looking at Doumyoji that day in the headmaster's office. He even has the same temper as his father."

"Tell me about it." Ayumi retorted. Both women laughed, knowing very well about Tsukasa's flaring temper tantrums. "I have another son, Aoi. He's still a baby though. He just turned 4 a month ago. Aoi looks more like me. Plus he's such a smart child, he amazes me sometimes." 

The two women talked more about each other's lives for a couple of hours. It seems they share the same stories when it comes to their children. The two women were comfortable with each other. Tsukushi was surprised to learn that Ayumi knew how to cook. Not many women of upper class families knew how to do anything at all, so Tsukushi admired her for that. They made lunch and ate in front of the television as they talked some more. 

Ayumi was leaving now and she hugged Tsukushi good bye. "We really should do this again. Thank you for having me over today Tsukushi. I'm glad we were able to talk. It wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be. Hopefully, we will see you tomorrow night at 7pm then." Tsukushi nodded and waved to Ayumi. She closed the door and thought about what happened today. She still wasn't sure if she could completely trust Ayumi, but she had no reason to doubt Ayumi either. 

Tsukushi picked up the phone and called her husband, feeling the need to tell him about Ayumi's visit. 

"Hiro?" Tsukushi spoke into the phone. "Hello Anata, how are you?"

She told him about her visitor this morning. Hiro found it odd that she would stop by and tell Tsukushi all those things. It was just something that threw Hiro off.

"So…Ayumi has invited our family to dinner tomorrow night at their house." 

"Are you kidding me? Dinner at Doumyoji-san's house?" Tsukushi noticed the spite in Hiro's tone. Hiro didn't want to have dinner with Tsukasa. He was still secretly upset of Tsukasa's late night visit.

"I haven't answered her yet, but I think it's a good idea to go."

"I don't like the idea Tsukushi. I don't even know Doumyoji-san-"

"That's why we're going over there for dinner. You guys can get to know each other better." Tsukushi cut him off. "Please, Hiro…."

Hiro sighed deeply, a sign of defeat. "Fine, we'll accept their invitation for tomorrow night." Tsukushi smiled.

"Thank you anata. I love you." Tsukushi ended the conversation to call Ayumi and accept the dinner offer.

At Eitokou, the day had passed by quickly. Ken was more than nervous as he waited for Aya by her locker. He didn't see her all day, basically because he had been trying his best to avoid everyone. Ken didn't want any of the F4 asking about his plan. 'Just be yourself, Ken. You can do it.' He told himself that all day today. 

"Ken-kun?" Ken had been so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even see Aya approaching. He snapped out of it and turned to Aya.

"What are you doing here?" She asked smiling up at him. 'God she's got the cutest smile.' Ken thought, fidgeting his hands.

"Well…I…uh…" He cleared his throat. This was harder than he thought. "I was wondering if you would go out..with….me tomorrow night for dinner." There, he said it. Aya was beyond shocked. Her heart fluttered and skipped a beat. 

Ken looked at her confused, because she was just smiling, but not saying anything at all. "Aya-chan?"

"Huh? Oh…Y-YES! I'd love to join you for dinner tomorrow night." Aya still had a biggest smile on her face as she constantly nodded her head yes.

"Really??" Ken smiled as he was shocked by Aya's answer. Aya nodded again. "Okay! That's great! I'll pick you up tomorrow night at 6:30 then?" Aya was speechless, so she just nodded. Ken walked off while Aya still stood there, shocked. 'Ken asked me out. He likes me? Why?' So many questions were running through her head. Then something hit her

"What am I going to wear?!" Quickly realizing she said that out loud, she looked around to see if anyone saw her. She turned back to her locker to see Mariko standing there.

"What are you going to wear? Where are you going Aya-chan?" Mariko knew perfectly where she was going, but she loved seeing Aya blush and smile like that. It was so amusing. 

"Your brother just asked me out on a date." Aya couldn't help but smile. She had a crush on Ken since she first saw him in the headmaster's office that day. He was always nice to her too, and it made her like him even more.

The two girls gathered their things and walked home. They talked about what Aya was going to wear and what they would do on their date. Mariko and Aya stopped at a coffee shop before going their separate ways. Both of them burst into laughter when some guys tried flirting with them. Mariko told the guys that they were both taken so they would be left alone. 

"I'M HOME!!!!!!!!!" Mariko ran all around the house looking for her family. She burst into Ken's room to tease him about Aya, but he wasn't there. 'Hmmm….' She went to the game room hoping Ken would be in there. She got tired of walking around the house and finding nobody, so she called her mom.

"Kaa-san? Where are you?"

"Oh Mariko-chan, I'm over in the salon. Come join me." Mariko hung up and went to her mom. She almost forgot the had a full salon in the house.

Mariko saw Tsukushi getting her nails done, which was rare for her mom. "Why are you in here kaa-san?" 

"Well, we are having dinner tomorrow night at Doumyoji-san's house, so I want to look all spiffed up. I'm getting my hair done too…

Mariko stopped listening after hearing about dinner at Doumyoji's house. 'DINNER AT DOUMYOJI'S?' 

"We're having dinner with Doumyoji-san and his wife?" Mariko asked hoping that it would just be Doumyoji-san and his wife and not Kesshin.

"Yes…." Mariko sighed. "And their children, Kesshin and Aoi." Mariko's face scrunched up at the sound of Kesshin's name. Tsukushi looked over at her daughter's face and held in her laughter. "Mariko-chan, your father and I expect you to be on your best behavior. We are aware that you and Kesshin-kun aren't the best of friends, but the decision has already been made."

"But…"

"No 'but'…You will join your father and I tomorrow night."

"What about nii-san?"

"He has a date with Aya-chan tomorrow night, so he won't be with us." Mariko grunted and left the salon.

She was still looking for Ken and decided to try his room again. Mariko found him in there smiling. 'Geez he's probably thinking about Aya.'

"This is UNBELIEVABLE!" Ken jumped to see Mariko standing next to his bed annoyed.

"What's the matter with you?"

"UGH! I have to go with kaa-san and tou-san to dinner tomorrow night at Doumyoji's house." Mariko plopped on Ken's bed with her arms folded. Ken tried really hard not to laugh, but he couldn't help it. Mariko would be having dinner with Kesshin, the one boy at school she couldn't stand. He was laughing so hard that Mariko finally hit him.

"It's not funny!"

"Yes it is! I can just picture you and Kesshin at the table together." Ken was laughing so hard at the thought of Mariko and Kesshin on their best behavior in front of each other. The two could barely stand each other's company. At school, they would always argue about something and insult each other non-stop. 

"FINE! Laugh all you want." Mariko stormed out of his room and slammed the doors shut. 

Friday. 'It's Friday' The thought of having dinner at Kesshin's tonight was driving Mariko mad. Neither Mariko nor Ken had much sleep last night. The two siblings barely made it down the stairs and out the door this morning. Ken was too nervous about his date with Aya and Mariko, for some odd reason, was nervous about dinner at the Doumyoji's. She was dreading dinner there, because she knew that her and Kesshin in the same room meant trouble. Mariko sighed as she sat in the car staring out the window.

School came and went. Mariko did a good job of avoiding everyone at school. She didn't want to run into the F4 today, for fear they may tease her and Kesshin about tonight. Mariko wasn't in the mood for it. She did see Aya in class and they talked about what Ken and Aya were going to do on their date tonight. She wasn't looking forward to walking home alone today. Ken had left immediately after class to get ready for his hot date with Aya. Mariko gathered all her books and closed her locker. 

"AHHH!!!!!" She screamed as she turned around and dropped all her books. She hadn't noticed someone standing behind her. 

"RYU-KUN!" Mariko was breathing heavily trying to calm herself as Ryu laughed at her reaction. 'Gods she's so cute' Ryu thought. She looked like she had seen a ghost. Ryu picked up all of her books and apologized for sneaking up on her. "Sorry Mariko-chan." 

"Ummm…Mariko-chan, can I ask you a favor?" Mariko nodded.

"Can you drop the –kun? We aren't kids anymore and it's kinda embarrassing when you call me Ryu-kun. Everyone stares." It was Mariko's turn to laugh at his request. 

"But Ryu-KUN" she giggled "I've always called you that." Mariko noticed Ryu's face turn even redder. "Okay RYU…I'll stop."

Ryu walked Mariko home. He knew about Ken's date with Aya and knew he would leave school early, which meant Mariko would be alone, and Ryu didn't like that idea. He had always watched over her. They'd known each other so long. He never thought of her as more than a friend, but looking over at her now, he felt different towards her. Her smiled melted his heart and her voice was always so sweet, except for when she was mad at Kesshin. As they walked, Ryu stared at her, admiring how she'd grown to be so beautiful. She definitely wasn't the little tomboy who played basketball with him and Ken during the summers. 

Ryu put his arm around Mariko's shoulders, causing her to tense up slightly. "Do you want to get some ice cream?" Ryu asked.

Mariko turned to Ryu, blushing profusely. "I.I..I…ah…Sure!" 

Mariko had never been this nervous around Ryu. 'What's this feeling?' Her heart thumped rapidly and wouldn't stop. She could swear that Ryu could hear her heart pounding so loud. 

"So what kind of ice cream do you want?" Ryu asked upon entering the ice cream shop. 'He doesn't seem nervous at all.' Mariko wanted to push his hand off, but at the same time, wanted it there. 

"Ah….chocolate chip cookie dough please."

The two continued the walk home in silence, eating their ice cream. Mariko had millions of questions in her head. Why did he do that? Why does his touch have that effect on me? What's he thinking? Mariko sighed in frustration.

"How come I didn't see you around all day?" Ryu broke the silence, noticing the awkwardness.

"Oh…I was just avoiding everyone today. I'm having dinner at Doumyoji's house tonight with my parents." Ryu smirked. 

"You're having dinner at Kesshin's?" Mariko nodded.

"Do Shinji and Aki know about this?" Ryu asked. Mariko shook her head violently. 

"PLEASE don't tell them. Knowing those two they'd be asking me if Doumyoji-san and I are gonna have sex. Those perverts." Both Mariko and Ryu broke out into laughter.

"Well, good luck tonight Mariko." Ryu said as they reached Mariko's house. For the second time that day, Ryu made her blush, calling her only by her first name.

"Thanks Ryu-k…" She gave her friend a hug . 'He smells so good. It's intoxicating.' 

She let go and entered the house. Ryu watched her walk away, his heart feeling light. He smiled when she turned around once more to wave good bye to him. 

Mariko rushed up to her room and plopped on her bed. Her mind was consumed by nothing but thoughts of Ryu. She never thought of him as anything else but a friend, but she never knew he could have that affect on her. The way he gazed at her while they were walking drove her crazy. She didn't know what he was staring at, but his gaze was so intense. Mariko felt like her world was spinning, like she couldn't breathe when he put his arm around her shoulder, when he smiled at her. It was so warm and his eyes so gentle. 

"What's happening to me?" She asked herself before closing her eyes.


	7. So this is dinner

Standard Disclaimers Apply. I do not own Hana Yori Dango. Hana Yori Dango and its characters belong to its rightful owners. I do lay claim on the characters I've created and the story concept. ^_^

Author's note: Wow…it's been SO long since I updated. Please forgive the delay. Writer's block, graduating from college and just LIFE got in the way. I can't guarantee anything, but I'll do my best to update more often. ^_^ Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed telling me you still want to read more =) you guys are the best ^_^ now on with the story…..

Ch. 6-So this is dinner….

"Mariko! Are you getting ready yet??" Tsukushi yelled through Mariko's door.

"Yes Kaa-san!" Mariko answered as she frantically tried to get ready for dinner. She thought she could take a quick nap before dinner, but ended up sleeping a little longer than she had planned. 

Finally, Mariko took one last glance of herself in the mirror. Her long and layered hair framed her slim face with its ends curled. Other than the slight tint of raspberry that stained her lips, Mariko managed to put on eye-liner, without poking her eyes out, and a hint of blush on her cheeks. She wore a silver necklace with three hanging diamonds that her parents gave her for Christmas one year. The necklace accentuated her black cotton sateen dress that fit her curvy figure down to mid-calf. The dress had an empire waist and a square neck-line, with thin spaghetti straps holding it up. Mariko wasn't too sure her dad would approve of the long slits on each side of her legs, but they weren't really THAT noticeable. Satisfied with her appearance, Mariko sprayed a light citrus perfume and headed down to meet her parents. 

"Wow Riko-chan! You look great. You tryin to impress Kesshin??" Ken teased his only sibling as he headed out for his date. 

"What makes you think I'd want to impress that jerk?! I'm merely trying to make a nice impression with Kaa-san's friends okay? Sheesh…" Mariko huffed, sticking her tongue out at Ken. 

"Whoa! You guys look cool!" Mariko said at her parents' outfits. 

"Thanks" Tsukushi smiled as they all made their way to the limo outside.

Mariko felt the ride to the Doumyoji's was taking too long and her nervousness just continued to build. Upon arriving at the Doumyoji mansion, Hiro nudged Mariko, causing her to jump slightly.

"I just want to remind you again-" 

"I know Tou-san. I'll behave" Mariko sighed as she knew exactly what her father was going to say. 

The doorbell rang at the Doumyoji mansion. "They're here." Ayumi said as she gathered the men in her life to greet their guests at the entrance.

The door opened, revealing a very polite butler and the Doumyoji family standing behind him. 

"Welcome" the butler bowed and stepped aside for the Nagane's to enter. 

Tsukasa and Ayumi greeted the three happily, making formal introductions between both families. 

Mariko looked to her right, and even did a double take as she set her eyes upon Kesshin. She almost didn't recognize him, as he normally wore grungy street clothes, but tonight Kesshin was in a black suit with a silver button down underneath. Kesshin hated ties and refused to wear one, instead leaving the top two buttons undone. Mariko couldn't stop staring because to put it bluntly, Kesshin looked….well….hot, and a slight blush came over Mariko's cheeks at the thought.

'Why's she staring at me like that?' Kesshin thought, obviously clueless. His heart skipped a beat when he saw her this evening. Mariko didn't notice, but Kesshin had his eyes on her the moment the butler had stepped aside. She looked absolutely beautiful, and for one brief moment, he forgot she was the hot-headed, tomboy-ish brat he knew her to be. 

"Good evening, Nagane-san" Kesshin said, breaking the awkward silence.

"Ah…good evening, Doumyoji-san" Mariko smiled, returning the greeting.

Both sets of parents paused in their conversation and stared at the two, hoping that nothing harsh would be said between them. Mariko looked down and noticed a little boy standing behind Kesshin. He had the prettiest big brown eyes. She smiled over at the toddler. Aoi smiled back at her and came out from hiding.

"Hi there cutie. What's your name?" Mariko asked the young boy. 

"Doum-yoji Aoi and I'm this old." Aoi said brokenly as he held up five fingers. 

"Aoi, you're only 4 not 5" Kesshin said as he put down one of Aoi's fingers.

"He's so cute!" Mariko giggled as she bent down to give Aoi a hug.   


"Are you my nii-san's girlfriend?" Mariko and Kesshin looked at each other and blushed profusely at the question. 

"No…Aoi-kun we're just friends." Aoi nodded then threw his arms around Mariko.

"You're pretty. You can be my girlfriend kay? What's your name?" Mariko laughed at this cute kid before her.

"My name is Mariko" Mariko stood back up and Aoi grabbed onto her hand.

"Kay Mar-ko-neesan, it's time for you to eat with Aoi now." Aoi pulled her into the direction of the dining room where their parents were already headed. Kesshin just followed behind feeling a bit jealous that his little brother was the one holding her hand and not him. 'Why am I feeling like this? Why do I care?' 

Everyone sat around the dinner table. Tsukasa was of course at the head with Ayumi and Kesshin to his right. Hiro sat on the other side of Tsukasa with Tsukushi, Mariko and Aoi, as Aoi refused to sit next to anyone else except for Mariko. Different conversations popped up around the dinner table. Hiro and Tsukasa discussed business affairs while Ayumi and Tsukushi continued their conversation from their first meeting. It was quieter further down the table. Kesshin tried to steal glances of Mariko while she spoke with Aoi. 'What should I say to her? I'm sure she doesn't want to talk to me, but this silence is killing me.' Kesshin cleared his throat.

"Ummm…Nagane-san, so..uh…how are you doing in biology?" Mariko, as well as the rest of the table, stopped eating. 'He spoke to me? For no reason?' Her eyes widened in surprise. 'Maybe tonight won't be so bad after all'

"I have an A in there right now. I always liked science classes." She replied. 'Geez, she didn't have to brag about her grade.' Kesshin thought as she answered him. 

"Nerd" he muttered under his breath, but it was loud enough for Mariko to hear that. She shot him an angry glance and continued eating. 'I spoke too soon.' 

"I have a secret to tell you." Aoi pulled Mariko's face closer to his and whispered, "I think nii-san likes you." Mariko nearly choked on her food. 'What is this kid thinking?'

Kesshin could hear the conversation quite well and choked on his steak when he heard Aoi's confession.

"In her dreams. She only wishes I liked her." There was no way in hell that Kesshin was going to let Mariko believe he liked her. 

'That's it' Mariko glared at him.

"Aoi, don't say things like that to her. She might get her hopes up, and I'd never like her. She's too much of a boy. " Ayumi kicked Kesshin under the table and Tsukasa shot him an evil gaze. 

"Look, brat, don't be jealous because I'm smarter and better looking than you. Really, did you think that I came here tonight because I WANTED to have dinner your royal stupidness?!?!" Mariko stood up, losing her last bit of self-control. 

"Nagane Mariko. Sit down now." Hiro said sternly, trying to contain his anger. Mariko could tell right away that he was upset and that she had messed up. 'HMPH!' She thought to herself as she sat down again. Kesshin smirked, and Ayumi kicked him even harder this time.

"We are trying to have dinner. If you two have nothing to say to each other then please be quiet." Ayumi stated in a very serious tone. Both Kesshin and Mariko folded their arms and turned their heads away from each other.

"It's kay Mar-ko-neesan. I still like you." Aoi said as he stuck his tongue out at Kesshin. 

The rest of dinner passed in silence between Kesshin and Mariko. 'And to think I actually thought he was 'hot' tonight. What was I thinking? I thought he'd be nicer, but I guess he's just an all around jerk.' Mariko thought silently, as she finished her dinner. 

Kesshin glanced over at Tsukasa 'Man, he's pissed. But it's not my fault. If little miss know it all hadn't been so smug and bragged like that, I wouldn't have had to be so rude.'

"Excuse me, Doumyoji-sama, but the rest of your guests are here now." One of their maids had said.

"Please show them to the living room. We are finished with dinner." Tsukasa said, looking around at everyone's empty plates.

Tsukasa, Ayumi, Hiro and Tsukushi stood up. "Are you three going to sit here the rest of the night or would you like to join the rest of us?" Ayumi asked the three silent children sitting there. Mariko stood up, carried Aoi in her arms and followed their parents into the living room. Kesshin growled and followed them soon after.

"OI! Tsukushi! Hiro!" Akira and Soujiro screamed out in unison when they saw their old friends there. 

The last time they were all together like this, including Tsukasa, was back in high school at Eitouku. Other than Tsukasa and Ayumi, the others had all kept in touch with Tsukushi over the years. Soujiro, Rui and Akira's families would visit Tsukushi and Hiro whenever they were in town. 

"Tsukasa, why didn't you tell us they were coming with us? Soujiro asked.

"It was a surprise." Tsukasa turned to Hiro and Tsukushi "I had planned for all of us to go out tonight. We can all go drink and dance and just talk like we used to."

Hiro looked over at Tsukushi. He wasn't concerned about going out. He liked all of Tsukushi's friends, and he didn't mind Tsukasa much after getting to know him better. Hiro's main concern was…

"What about us?" Kesshin asked upon hearing his parents' plans for the evening.

"You and Mariko-chan can watch Aoi." Tsukushi shot a glance at Ayumi. 'What's this woman thinking? Is she crazy? Leaving these two alone?' Mariko and Kesshin stared at each other once again in disgust. 

"Kaa-san please tell me I can go home now. Don't make me stay here please. Tou-san please, you know how this evening's going to turn out if I stay here" Mariko pleaded with Tsukushi and Hiro.

"Mar-ko-neesan don't wanna stay with Aoi?" The little boy had unshed tears in his eyes as he gave Mariko the most irresistible pout. Mariko looked at him and was torn. She really didn't want to spend any more time than she had to with Kesshin and here was Aoi…practically begging her to stay. 

"Aoi, I can watch over you myself. We'll go play games or something okay? Just let Nagane-san go home." 

"Don't like you." Aoi stuck his tongue out at Kesshin and wrapped his arms around Mariko's neck. "Mar-ko-neesan please stay with Aoi. Please…"

Mariko gave in to the pouty face and puppy dog eyes "Allright…I'll stay." 

"You'll be okay right Mariko-chan?" Hiro surprised at her answer. She nodded and gave him the fakest smile ever. 

"Okay, now that that's settled. We'll be going now. Kesshin, the numbers are over by the phone. Call us if you need anything." Tsukasa said.

"Hai Otou-san" Kesshin nodded.

"Mariko-chan, your tou-san and I have our cell phones on if you need us okay?" Tsukushi said to Mariko as they walked out the door. Tsukushi turned around and mouthed the words "I'm sorry" to Mariko. 

The doors closed. It was Mariko, Kesshin, and Aoi. Alone. 

"Are you sure she'll be okay with him?" Hiro asked Tsukushi in the car. 

"She chose to stay. If she knew she couldn't handle Kesshin-kun, she would have insisted on going home." Tsukushi tried to calm her husband's worries.

The three children stood in the hallway glancing at each other, unsure of what to do next. Moments of awkward silence passed until Mariko felt a tug at her dress. She looked down to see Aoi trying to get her attention. Aoi wanted to go play hide and seek now. 'Hide and seek? This is gonna be hard.' She thought to herself.

"Sorry Aoi-kun but can we play another game? I can't play hide and seek in this dress." Mariko had to tell the toddler. 

Kesshin saw Aoi's disappointment and said, "If you want to change into something more comfortable, Nagane-san, I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind if you borrowed something of hers." Mariko looked up to Kesshin and thanked him, following up the stairs to his mother's closet. She stood in the middle of Ayumi's closet speechless. The closet was almost as big as the room, with half of it filled to the top with shoes. 

"Just choose whatever you would feel most comfortable in and meet us in the entertainment room when you finish. Hikaru-chan will show you the way," Kesshin spoke as he took Aoi into his arms and exited the room. Mariko thought he was being exceptionally nice at the moment. She didn't understand him at all. One minute he's nice and the next he's back to being the hot-headed brat. Mariko shrugged her shoulders and began digging through Ayumi's massive closet. She was impressed that most of Ayumi's clothing were very up to date in style and she was in awe of all the beautiful gowns hanging before her. After searching through everything, she decided on a pair of jeans and black v-neck ¾ length sweater. It was something she could run around the mansion in. Mariko had taken off her dress and managed to get into the jeans before the bedroom door flew open. Aoi came running into the room and hid behind Mariko. She slowly looked down to Aoi. Confusion swept over her face. 

"Come back here with my wallet you little brat!!!!!" Kesshin yelled as he ran into the room after Aoi. He stopped dead in his tracks when he realized that the one thing standing between him and Aoi was a half-naked Mariko. He tried hard to maintain eye contact with Mariko, knowing full well that looking down was NOT an option. Mariko's face was beet red now and she was still speechless watching the scene before her unfold.

"I…I…I…I'm….s..s…s..sorry" Kesshin stammered, still not losing eye contact with Mariko. Aoi glanced at the two staring at each other and then ran back out the room. Kesshin noticed Aoi's exit and ran out after him. 

Mariko stood there not wanting to believe what just happened, actually happened. 

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs once reality had sunk in. Kesshin had seen her half naked. With the sound of her scream, Kesshin and Aoi froze as they sat in the entertainment room waiting for Mariko. 

"Ummmm..You're in trouble Nii-san." Aoi chimed with a smirk on his face. 'Phase 1 complete' He thought to himself. Aoi thought it'd be a good idea to get Kesshin and Mariko together. He liked Mariko and wanted his brother to like her too. 

"Me? This is your fault Aoi. If you hadn't run in there…." Kesshin's mind drifted back to the sight of Mariko. Of course he managed to get a little look at her. She looked amazing. Her body was well toned and she had a slight tan that made her skin glow. He remembered her face, blushing profusely at the situation. He didn't mean to go in there. He didn't even realize it till he saw her. He was so captivated by her beauty that he couldn't even speak right. Kesshin sighed as he contemplated what to say to her. 'She's right. I'm such an idiot.' 

After letting out her anger and frustration, Mariko got dressed, still not wanting to believe Kesshin saw her like that. She really just wanted to break down and cry until she started to get mad at Kesshin for running in there in the first place. Mariko thought of all sorts of names to call him, but she remembered the look in his eyes. He truly didn't mean to walk in on her, and she saw that when she looked into his eyes. His gaze was so intense that she had shivers up her spine. She noticed and appreciated that he never broke their gaze until he turned around to leave. Smiling, she walked out to find Aoi and Kesshin..

Mariko entered the entertainment room with her face still slightly red from the earlier incident. Kesshin stood, not able to look her in the face, and began to talk, "Nagane-san….I'm really really…" 

"Don't worry about it Doumyoji," Mariko cut him off as they stared deep into each other's eyes. 'It's that look again.'

She broke the gaze and walked over to Aoi. "Ready to play now Aoi-kun?" Aoi jumped up and down and nodded his head in excitement. It was decided that the first game, Aoi and Mariko would hide while Kesshin counted to 50. There were of course limitations to the hiding grounds. The mansion was so huge that this one game would last forever if there weren't any boundaries. Aoi set the boundaries to the entire West wing's first floor. While Kesshin counted, Mariko and Aoi split up to find their hiding spots. Mariko didn't search too long, finding an empty hall closet and Aoi decided to hide under his father's desk in the library. 

"Come out come out wherever you are!" Kesshin yelled out after he finished counting. This was going to be tough, he thought. The first floor of the west wing was still massive ground to cover, but it wasn't too hard to find Aoi. All Kesshin had to do was follow the spurts of giggles he heard. Mariko sat in the closet wondering what was taking so long for this game to be over with. It's not like Kesshin was a complete idiot and couldn't count to 50 properly. 'Then again, it is Kesshin' Mariko thought. Plus, she didn't hide anywhere hard. It was just a hallway closet. 

Once Kesshin got a hold of Aoi, the little boy couldn't hold his laughter in any longer. He laughed and giggled and it didn't help that Kesshin was tickling the poor child. 

"Nii-san…tickles…stop…hahahahaha" Aoi couldn't stop laughing and finally stopped when he thought of Mariko. "Did ya find Mar-ko nee-san?" 

'Damn. Forgot to find Mariko.' Kesshin stood up and began searching for her.

Mariko was tired of waiting for the two, so she decided to head back to the entertainment room. When she stepped out of the closet, she was lost. During the game, she just walked around without paying attention to exactly where she was going. 'Damn.' The Doumyoji mansion was a maze like her house and it was easy to get lost. She just began turning into every which hallway and opened every door. She opened one last door in hopes that it would lead her back to the entertainment room. For once, she would have been more than happy to see Kesshin at that very moment. Instead, she found another room. She tossed her arms in the air. "I GIVE UP" She said in defeat as she crashed on the bed before her. Trying to find her way out exhausted her and gave her a headache. 

Kesshin roamed the halls and all the rooms in the west wing but couldn't find Mariko anywhere. Not only was he annoyed that he lost Mariko, but he had Aoi crying nonstop because of the missing girl. 

"Find Mar-ko nee-san, please Nii-san." Aoi bawled, and after about an hour of searching, Aoi had fallen asleep, and so Kesshin put Aoi to bed. 

"This is just great. What am I going to tell Nagane-sama? 'I'm sorry sir, but I lost your daughter playing hide and seek.'" Kessin talked to himself as he headed to his room. 

He had all the help looking for her around the rest of the Doumyoji grounds, but none could locate her. It's as if she disappeared into thin air. 

"I'm such an idiot. She's such an idiot." It was past midnight now and Kesshin hoped with his life that Mariko had gone home for the evening. He entered his room and lay on his bed, not realizing the lump of something next to him. A moment later, he felt a hand on his chest. At first he thought it was his, but when he held two hands in front of his face, there was still a third hand on his chest. He jumped in surprise as he turned to see Mariko sleeping soundly in his bed. He quickly kneeled on the bed and shook her.

"YOU IDIOT!! THIS IS WHERE YOU'VE BEEN ALL THIS TIME??!?!?!" Mariko woke from her nap to find Kesshin shaking the hell out of her. 

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" She yelled back at him.

"Dammit Nagane….I almost called the police because we couldn't find you and here you've been SLEEPING! You idiot! How hard is it for you to follow directions?? We said stay in the WEST wing" Kesshin screamed.

"Well if you didn't take so long to count to 50 I wouldn't have gotten bored and left my hiding place!" Mariko yelled back in defense. 

"And quit shaking me!" Mariko punched Kesshin and he flew off his bed. Aoi walked in just then with groggy eyes, but when he saw Mariko, he jumped on the bed and threw his arms around her crying.

"Aoi thought Mar-ko nee-san was gone forever" Mariko managed to make out what Aoi was saying through his tears. She hugged the child back and within minutes, Aoi was smiling again. 

She looked back at Kesshin and saw the concern in his eyes. 'Why's he looking at me like that?'

"Why were you in bed with me?" She asked Kesshin cautiously, half scared to hear the answer.

He sat down next to her on the bed. "Well, Nagane…you're in MY bed. How did YOU get HERE?" So Mariko told him her story of how she got lost trying to find her way back to them. 

"Geez. I thought something happened to you. I had everyone looking for you. I was gonna die because I didn't know what I was going to tell your parents." Mariko laughed.

Kesshin was annoyed at her laughter. "You find that FUNNY?"

"So you DO care about me then huh Doumyoji?" Mariko said jokingly. She seemed to find it so cute that he was worried about her like that. It was a side of him she hadn't seen too often. He was always bickering or calling her some profound name. Kesshin was worried about her. He didn't know where she was and that in itself was a scary thought. 

"I just didn't want your dad to kill me for losing you." Kesshin said softly as he stood to leave.

"Don't go Nii-san. Tell Aoi a story please." Aoi grabbed Kesshin and pleaded for him to stay. 

Kesshin sighed, giving in to Aoi's request and began his story. It was a cute sight. Aoi was sitting down between Kesshin and Mariko on the bed. 

Kesshin got about as far as "Once upon a time…" before Mariko fell back into her dream state. Minutes later Kesshin yawned and eventually fell asleep telling his story. The little boy between them glanced at the two sleeping bodies and smiled mischievously once again. Quietly, Aoi left and retreated back to his own room, leaving Kesshin and Mariko alone. 'Phase 2 complete.' Aoi clapped his hands and smiled before falling back asleep.

The Doumyoji's and Nagane's entered the mansion half expecting it to be a war zone, but were quite surprised at the silence. 

"Hikaru-chan, where are the children?" Ayumi asked.

"I believe they've all gone to bed, Doumyoji-san" She replied, but couldn't hide the blush on her cheeks. 

"And Nagane-chan? Did she go home?" Ayumi continued.

Hikaru looked away, unsure of how to answer this. She had walked into Kesshin's room earlier to see if he needed anything else for the evening, but she found Mariko and Kesshin sleeping sweetly in a rather intimate embrace. She quickly left the room, assuming Kesshin needed nothing else. Hikaru's face reddened even more remembering what she saw.

"Hikaru-chan?" Tsukasa called out to her.

"Uh…Nagane-san is with Kesshin-san" Hikaru answered with her voice wavering. 

Both Hiro and Tsukasa didn't like the sound of that so the two rushed up to Kesshin's room. Neither man was prepared for the sight before them. Mariko slept facing Kesshin with her head on his arm and her hand on his chest while Kesshin had his arms wrapped around her tightly, as if scared she was going to go away.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE?!?!" Tsukasa and Hiro roared in unison.


End file.
